The Ghost of a Chance Dempsey and Makepeace s4e10
by bevhardy
Summary: Makepeace is just out of hospital and Spikings is reluctant to put her on a proper case. Chasing ghosts for a senile old man is hardly SI10 work but the night shifts bring Dempsey and Harry closer. The opportunity is there but does Dempsey stand a chance?
1. Chapter 1

The Ghost of a Chance

SI10 was in uproar. Cheers and shouts could be heard throughout the entire building. The officers roared with laughter and for once Spikings simply leant against the door frame of his office with his arms crossed and observed the spectacle, an amused grin on his face.

Fry was balanced on one foot halfway down a long line of masking tape that had been stuck to the floor. An empty waste paper basket had been placed over his head and his arms were outstretched as he tried desperately to keep his balance.

"Hey, ya see that boss? You think we should book him for drunk and disorderly?" Dempsey shouted across to Spikings.

"Give him a chance to prove himself Dempsey, he hasn't reached the end of the line yet."

"Come on Fry, get moving!" one of the officers yelled.

Fry's response was indistinguishable and came out as a muffled noise from underneath the waste paper basket. He put a foot forward but wobbled alarmingly and compensated by taking another two quick steps along the line.

"Oi, get back on the line, you're over stepping it Fry!" the officer shouted.

Fry mumbled again and rose on his tiptoes before taking another couple of steps. Hilarity filled the room.

Dempsey leant towards Makepeace who was stood next to him, her arms crossed and her lips pressed together as she tried to hold her laughter in.

"You must be glad to be back now. Look what you've been missin'," he said under his breath.

"I don't recall it ever being quite like this," she grinned.

He leant his arm on her shoulder and looked down at her for a moment, his eyes brightening before returning his attention to fry.

"Rubbish!" Dempsey hollered.

Chas pointed to Dempsey. "Good one! It's the end of the line for you Fry!"

Dempsey acknowledged Chas's pun. "You've lost you're chance now sonny!" Chas added.

"Yeah, it's bin and gone!" the other officer joked.

More hilarity filled the room.

"Fry, get a bloody move on will you? I do have to put _some _reports through before the end of the day!" Spikings boomed.

At the sudden sound of Spikings's almighty voice reverberating around the room Fry lost all control of his arms and legs and teetered on the brink of total humiliation. The hand that shot out beside him ensured that his final downfall was as spectacular as everyone had hoped. He toppled to the side whilst circling his arms like a demented windmill before crashing into a chair and falling to the floor. He sat, surrounded by the reams of paper that had slid off his desk in the commotion, whilst the entire office exploded into life with cheering and shouting. Taking the bin off his head, he grabbed a sheet of paper, rolled it into a ball and threw it into the crowd. The ball of paper was swiftly hurled back in his direction and there followed a frenzy of scrunching and throwing as paper missiles shot around the office.

"All right, all right, that's enough!" Spikings bellowed. "If I don't see some bottoms on seats sharpish all intoxicating substances are going to be relocated…to _my _office." Spikings added.

The crowd quickly dispersed as the officers made a beeline for their glasses of celebratory drinks, taking them back to their desks and watching with relief when Spikings disappeared back through his office door.

It was around lunchtime when Spikings had gathered everybody in his office to make an announcement that had startled everybody. He had declared that, although he still expected paperwork done and files on his desk, there was much reason to celebrate that day. Firstly, and most importantly, Sergeant Makepeace was now in good health and had returned to SI10 bringing some style and decorum back into the office. Secondly, although many of the officers saw the following reason as more of an excuse than anything else, Spikings felt it was his duty to inform them that Fry was going to reach his twenty fifth birthday by midnight that day. And last, but definitely not least, he was delighted to say that he had recently been voted president of the London and Provincial Angling Association. All of the above considered, drinks would be provided to mark the occasion.

A couple of hours, and several drinks later, Fry's ability to hold his drink was in question and the masking tape had been produced.

Fry was still sat on the floor when Spikings re-emerged from his office moments after the entertaining display. Spikings had in mind to speak to Dempsey and Makepeace but when he caught sight of a bewildered Fry still sat amongst the array of papers he ran an exasperated hand over his head and addressed Fry instead.

"Fry!" he barked. "If you want to make it to your twenty fifth birthday I strongly suggest that you pick your uncoordinated self up off that floor and tidy this chaos up!"

Fry flapped around for a moment on the sheets of paper like a fish on the shore before finally rising to his feet.

"Dempsey, Makepeace," Spikings made a head gesture towards his office, "a word please." He turned but then swung back before Dempsey and Makepeace had joined him. "Oh and Fry, that report you've taken most of this week to finish, make sure it's on my desk in five minutes."

Fry nodded and then the office door was shut. He breathed a sigh of relief. Then he looked down at the floor and sighed at the mess. It was only seconds later when his head shot up, a look of horror on his face.

"The report!" he exclaimed, diving back onto the floor and reaching for the scattered balls of scrunched up paper.

Dempsey took a seat on a chair in front of Spikings's desk and glanced sideways at Makepeace who was sat next to him. He itched to reach out and touch her, to take her hand and pull her onto his lap, to feel the softness of her lips against his; and although he was over the moon that she had returned to work that morning he had the feeling that working with her now was going to be nothing less than torture. Since the night they had spent together in Makepeace's bed Dempsey had been haunted with memories of her body moving under his, her soft sighs, the sound of her voice calling out his name, the feel of her skin as his hand slid over her silk nightdress. He wanted more, he had imagined more a million times but now his imagination had been given a jump start. Now he could almost feel what it would be like to caress her naked body, to have her begging him to go further. He'd wanted women before but he'd never felt anything close to this kind of desire for a woman.

"Lieutenant," Spikings called, "do try to pay attention."

He grinned. He knew he'd been caught out. "Sure boss."

_Good god, it's like having a love sick school boy sat in front of me!_

"I have a rather," Spikings cleared his throat and looked a little uncomfortable, "sensitive, somewhat unusual task for you two tonight."

_Tonight? Hmmm, I could think of a sensitive task for us tonight._

Dempsey's eyes were on Makepeace again.

"Sounds intriguing Sir," Makepeace commented.

"Yes, well it's a challenge of a different sort I have to say. I had a phone call from a fellow angler of mine earlier and he asked me to pull a few strings to help him out with an old friend of his."

"What he had some trout stolen? Been threatened with a fishing line and a net or somethin'?" Dempsey sniggered. Spikings's eyes bore into him. "Sorry boss."

"Hmph, it's not fishing related," he said behind gritted teeth. Spikings picked up a pen from off his desk and ran his fingers up and down it. He seemed reluctant to continue speaking. "It's...well it's a favour for a friend and considering that you've not long been out of hospital," he directed the comment at Makepeace, "you're going to look into it." He spoke as if there was no room for argument although he suspected that the Sergeant would kick up a fuss about this one.

"Look into what sir?" Makepeace asked a little impatiently.

"The err... incidents at Rainington Hall."

"Incidents?" Dempsey inquired.

"Yes. The owner, Lord Maybrook, is a nice chap but he's been having a few problems lately with unwanted err intruders. I want you two to pay him a visit tonight and investigate." Spikings finally finished.

"Tonight sir? Could we not go today?" Makepeace suggested.

"No sergeant, this particular investigation warrants a night visit."

"How come boss?"

Spikings ran a rand over his head before continuing. "The intruders have been entering the house at night. I'll provide you with more information and directions to Rainington Hall before you leave here later this afternoon. And now I'm going to see what that lilly livered excuse of an officer out there has done with that damn report." With that he rose from his seat and made for the door, pausing before he left the room to quickly add, "Oh and you need to know that Lord Maybrook has not been on top of the world lately. In fact his health is in serious question. He has been known to refer to the intruders as...well...visitors from the other side. And I'm not talking from the east end here." With that he was gone.

"What the..." Makepeace was staring after Spikings with a look of disbelief. "He thinks were the bloody Mystery Inc now!" She stood and began pacing the office.

"Scooby dooby dooooo," Dempsey laughed. He rose and stood in front of her blocking her way. "What, you don't like spooks?"

She folded her arms and glared at him. "This isn't a proper case at all. Spikings is obviously mollycoddling me because I've just come out of hospital. It's ridiculous!"

He rested his arms on her shoulders. "Oh I don't know, it could be quite fun." She rolled her eyes. "So, is it good to be back here? You and me again, partners hmm?" he said softly, moving closer to her. Her eyes flicked nervously to the door. He put a hand under her chin and turned her head to him.

"Dempsey," she warned as his mouth moved towards hers. She put up a hand between them and halted him. "What on earth do you think you're doing?"

"Just one quick kiss," he whispered. "Go on, I dare you."

"You're out of your mind," she whispered back. "This is Spikings's office and he's just outside!"

"All the more exciting eh Harry," he grinned. "You've never imagined stuff in here?"

Her eyes widened. "I don't know what you mean!"

His grin grew. "Sure you do."

And then without warning his lips were pressed to hers, his hand on the back of her head leaving her no room for escape. Moments later he pulled away, turned and made for the door. She watched him go, instinctively lifting a hand to her lips. At the door he turned back to her and winked.


	2. Chapter 2

Dempsey leant over to Makepeace's desk and poured a little more wine into her glass. She looked up at him and he put a finger to his lips.

"Don't tell no one. I stashed this away just for us," he winked, hiding the bottle under his desk.

She laughed.

He held up his glass to clink with her and she was forced to reach across the gap to clink back. His eyes instinctively moved to the gaping front of her blouse and hovered with fascination on the lacy edges of her bra that he could just see and the creamy curves exposed above it. He was suddenly back in her bed with her, touching those same curves. He tried desperately to put the two together, the feel and the sight of her in his hand, but his imagination failed him.

Makepeace's eyes rose to Dempsey's face and she sprung back suddenly when she saw the direction of his gaze.

"Dempsey! You could at least _try_ to keep your eyes on my face," she said, raising a hand to cover the front of her blouse.

He grimaced. Caught out. He leant forward and spoke in a hushed voice. "I can't help it. You're too much temptation. I've slept in your bed for god sake. I've had you underneath me, I've felt…" He was getting more aroused the more he spoke.

"Dempsey, shhh."

"Give me a break here Harry."

She leant closer to him to speak, her face inches from his. "Calm down. I just don't want the whole office to hear."

He wasn't entirely listening. His eyes were all over her face, sending electric sparks into her eyes. The corners of her mouth twitched as she tried not to smile. His eyes dipped and he was looking lower again. A spurt of laughter slipped out of her and she slapped him on the arm, moving back into her seat.

Their eyes were still on each other when they both picked up their glasses to take a sip of their drinks. Then they looked up to scan the office but both froze when they were met with a dozen or so eyes looking directly at them. Makepeace tensed when Chas approached them, closely followed by Fry and the looks of intrigue from the rest of the group.

"Are you holding out on us there Dempsey?" Chas asked.

Dempsey grinned. "Nothin' to tell yet. I'm still workin' on her."

Makepeace's eyes widened. "Err, I think he was talking about the wine Dempsey."

Dempsey looked a little shocked. "Oh." He smiled and shrugged.

Makepeace was mortified by the giggles and whispers amongst the group.

"So you're not dating Dempsey then?" Fry asked Makepeace.

Dempsey observed the look on Fry's face and for once he actually felt quite sorry for him. One thing was for certain; he didn't stand a cat in hell's chance with her!

"Err…" Makepeace suddenly realised that she didn't know how to answer that question.

"That's classified information Fry. Did you want something?" Dempsey said, coming to her rescue.

Fry was always a little nervous when Dempsey spoke to him in that tone so he changed the conversation. "You two coming to my birthday bash tomorrow night? You're both invited."

"Yeah, if we aint workin'. You wanna go?" he asked Makepeace, deliberately making a point of indicating to everyone that if they went, it would be together.

She gave a nonchalant nod.

"We'll come if we can," he summed up.

Fry looked pleased and walked away. Chas watched Fry go and then moved closer to Dempsey. "Psst, fill us up will you?" he said, nudging Dempsey with an empty glass in his hand.

Dempsey sighed but poured some wine into Chas's glass. "That's all you're gettin'."

Chas took his wine back to his desk with a smug look on his face.

Dempsey looked at Makepeace thoughtfully for the next couple of minutes while she pretended to show an interest in some papers on her desk. He suddenly laughed out of the blue and she looked up.

"They're just dyin' to know if we're…well, you know."

"Hmm." Her response was noncommittal.

"If we're datin' and…" He didn't know how to put it. "Well, if we're doin' other stuff." Her eyes flicked up to his. "Or if it's on the horizon," he finished, fishing for a response. She took in a breath as if to speak but then changed her mind and turned her attention back to the papers. He shifted awkwardly in his chair. "So is it?" he asked suddenly.

"Is it what?"

"On the horizon." He was waiting on a knife's edge.

Makepeace looked decidedly uncomfortable with the direction of the conversation. "I…err…On the horizon?" she eventually came out with, stalling having to answer him.

He watched the colour of her face deepen slightly and he began to smile. "Yeah, on the horizon, imminent, on the cards?" he pushed.

She hadn't expected him to ask and she had no idea how to respond. Racking her brains for a witty reply wasn't working either yet he was sitting there watching her with that grin, waiting for an answer. She looked down again at the papers but she was painfully aware that he knew she was paying way too much attention to them. He gave a small laugh.

"Harry," he called. She ignored him and blushed even deeper.

_What's wrong with me? I'm acting like a bloody twelve-year-old schoolgirl!_

He grinned and pushed his face closer to hers. "Hello," he called again.

She moved her face away from his to study a file further to her left. He moved his face in line with hers, forcing her to look at him.

She cracked. "Stop it!" she laughed, blushing furiously now and pushing him away.

He was grinning from ear to ear. "Well, well, well," he said, putting his hands behind his neck and leaning back in his seat to observe her further. "The lady blushes. Sergeant Harry Makepeace all of a fluster. I never thought I'd see the day."

"Dempsey, Makepeace," Spikings interrupted. "That information you need, it's in my office."

_Thank god for that!_

She rose out of her chair and he followed her, whispering as they went,

"Ooooh, saved by the boss eh."


	3. Chapter 3

Makepeace pressed the buzzer for Dempsey's apartment and waited to be let in. Dempsey's voice could be heard over the intercom.

"The Ghostbusters would like to welcome you to their headquarters. Do come in but please mind the ectoplasm on level two."

She rolled her eyes. "Very funny Dempsey, just let me in."

He buzzed and she opened the door, making her way up to his apartment.

When she reached his front door she saw that it was left open for her so she entered but saw no signs of him.

"Dempsey, are you ready to go yet?" she called, searching the lounge and turning to check the other rooms.

"Gocha!" he shouted, jumping out on her and grabbing her around the waist. She almost jumped through the roof. He laughed. "Don't worry. It's not a ghost, it's only me."

She pushed him away. "You'll be a ghost before long if you don't get ready," she said looking down at his jogging bottoms. "I thought we were supposed to be leaving at eight o clock."

"Just been workin' out. Gotta build up my strength to save you from all the spooks," he grinned.

"Go and get ready then or we'll be late," she said, pushing him towards the bathroom.

He looked down at her hands on his bare chest and raised an eyebrow.

She pulled her hands back. "Go on, go."

"All right," he sighed, heading for the bathroom. "Will you do me a favour Harry and just wash up those few dishes and put away that shopping for me?" he called out.

She frowned. "Do I look like your maid?"

Loud laughter could be heard over the sound of the shower as he turned it on in the bathroom. "I'd love to see you in a maid's outfit Harry but it will save me some time if you help me out…we don't want to be late."

She tutted and walked into the kitchen to face a sink full of dishes and a bag full of shopping spilt out over the kitchen table.

"I don't know why I'm doing this for him," she mumbled to herself as she filled the sink with water and emptied the rest of the shopping out of the bag.

Running back to the sink before the water overflowed she proceeded to place all the dishes in the soapy water and wash them up. She was just drying the dishes, a plate and tea towel in hand, when the telephone rang.

"Will you get that for me Harry?" Dempsey shouted.

She sighed and wandered out into the hallway. "Thinks I'm his bloody secretary now too."

She answered the phone. "Hello."

"Hiya. Gee he never told me he had a new girl in his life," came the broad American accented reply.

"Oh I'm not his girl friend, I'm just his maid," she said sarcastically.

"Well you sound real cute. Don't let him get to ya honey. Treat them mean, keep them keen. That's what I always say."

"I'll bear that in mind. I'm not sure he can come to the phone right now, can I take a message?"

"Oh my bejesus! I'm interruptin'. Don't tell me he's got ya dressin' up for him already! Well you can pass on a message to that son of mine that his mother called and she wants to know where he's been for the last few weeks."

Makepeace nearly dropped the receiver. "Oh yes. I didn't realise…err, who it was. He's just in the shower, I can get him out if you want." She bit her lip.

_That didn't sound any better!_

"Nah, don't sweat it honey. He'll not be ridin' high to talk to his old ma with you around."

"No, I don't think you unders…" Makepeace tried to interrupt.

"Catch ya later honey." And with that she hung up.

_Ooops! Not the best first conversation to have with his mother! _

"Whoever it is, tell them I'll ring them later," Dempsey called out.

Harry moved towards the bathroom. "It was your mother Dempsey but she said she'd ring you another time."

"No sweat."

Makepeace leant against the wall in the hallway and absentmindedly wiped the plate in her hand with the tea towel. She had a distant far away look on her face for a while and then she shrugged and went to move away. As she looked up however she noticed that the bathroom door was ajar and she instinctively averted her gaze. She stood staring at the opposite wall for a moment and then her eyes flicked back towards the bathroom. She abruptly shook her head and moved her eyes away again. Then in spite of herself a smile crept across her face and her gaze moved once more, her eyes searching through the steam. He was stood with his back to her, his head tilted to the side as he enjoyed the feel of the hot water flowing over him. Her eyes softened as she watched him. Then her gaze moved slowly down his body and her eyes widened.

_Wow! He does work out a lot!_

She sighed and went to walk away but to her utter horror when she looked up he had turned his head and was staring straight at her. She abruptly pushed herself away from the wall and disappeared back into the kitchen.

After she'd finished drying the dishes she went to the task of putting the shopping away with a fierce determination to put Dempsey out of her mind. Or at least the disturbing picture of him in the shower anyway! She had to get a grip!

When Dempsey walked into the kitchen there was still shopping left on the table. She reached out to pick up some cartons of milk.

"Thanks for doin' that harry." He looked towards the empty sink.

"You owe me one," she replied, following his gaze and then turning back to him.

He was staring at her with a huge grin on his face and her heart jolted nervously. She pushed the cartons of milk into his hands.

"Here, you do the rest. And hurry up about it, we're late," she said, striding out into the hall.

She opened the front door and waited impatiently for him to join her so that they could get this ridiculous night over with. When he walked out of the kitchen and approached her he was still grinning. He picked up his keys from off the hall table and moved over to the door, blocking her way before she could move out of it.

"Were you enjoyin' yourself there Harry?"

She glared at him. "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean, there's no need to be defensive about it."

"Will you move out of the way please?" she said looking purposely at his arm which was blocking her way. "We need to be going."

"No problem but I've no idea why you're so flustered and distracted lately," he grinned.

"I think you're letting your imagination run away with you lieutenant, nothing has changed."

"Well something's distracting that mind of yours Harry." He lifted an eyebrow.

"Oh yes, and what makes you say that?"

"You put all the tins in the fridge!" he laughed.


	4. Chapter 4

Im just about to upload chapter 5.

Rainington Hall was a fine example of an eighteenth century mansion. It was built of a pale golden sandy coloured stone which gave it an appearance of light and grace. The brick wings were foliage covered and the style of stone moulding around the main entrance and windows was typical English Baroque.

Dempsey and Makepeace stood in front of the house for a while to admire its architecture before they approached the front porch, at which point the graceful glass panelled entrance door opened and a rather plump but elegantly dressed lady welcomed them.

"We've been expecting you," she smiled, gesturing for them to enter. "Welcome to Rainington Hall."

They stepped inside a large central hall from which rose a staircase in two broad flights leading to the upper floors. The ceiling was decorated with ornate carved wood and plaster panels and a dominant feature of the hall was the huge fireplace surrounded by fine paintings.

"Elizabeth Abbott," the woman said, holding out her hand to both of them. "But you can call me Bessie, everyone else does," she smiled. The woman had a friendly, welcoming air about her and two dimples appeared in her cheeks when she smiled.

"Sergeant Harriet Makepeace and this is Lieutenant James Dempsey," Makepeace said, shaking the lady's hand.

"We appreciate your visit. I am the housekeeper here and Lord Maybrook's companion during his time of illness. He has a bad heart you see," Bessie said softly. "And these frightening sights that he's been talking about are not good for his blood pressure. Perhaps it will put his mind at ease a little to know that you will be here in case anything…" she paused "…happens tonight. Please follow me," she said, leading them into another room off the hall.

The room was lavishly furnished and indicated the owner's passion for art as the walls were hung with paintings and tapestries; the surfaces adorned with rare ornaments and other priceless objects. Across most of one side of the room were large arched windows affording magnificent views over the landscaped gardens beyond. Dempsey and Makepeace took a seat on one of the sofas and Bessie sat opposite them.

"Lord Maybrook is sleeping at the moment. He has restless nights so I thought it best not to disturb him for now."

"What exactly has been troubling him?" Makepeace asked tactfully.

"Well he seems to have it in his head that the hall is haunted, stuff of nonsense if you ask me. I believe that someone has been trespassing in the grounds and lately in the house too. But poor old Thomas gets confused and what with his weak heart I'm concerned that this trespasser is trying to scare him to death!"

"Know of anybody who'd want to do that? Anyone who'd want Thomas…" Makepeace turned her head to Dempsey and frowned. Dempsey cleared his throat, "…I mean Lord Maybrook out of the way?" Dempsey asked.

Bessie looked shocked. "No. Everyone adores Thomas."

"Who's usually in the house?" Dempsey inquired.

"Only the usual staff but they have been here for years and they are very well trusted," Bessie pointed out.

Dempsey put a hand to his face in a thoughtful gesture. "What about family? Does he have any family around?"

Bessie's face clouded over. "I've never met any of them. His wife passed away long ago but you'd have to ask him yourself if you want any more details than that."

"Perhaps it was simply someone looking to take some of these priceless objects," Makepeace said, glancing around the room.

"I thought that at first but then there has never been anything taken." Bessie sighed and looked out of the windows anxiously. "Lord Maybrook claims that he has seen shadows and heard noises out there, in here and even in his bedchamber."

"Well, we'll stick around tonight and if the intruder comes back, we'll have a few questions for him," Dempsey winked reassuringly.

Bessie's face lit up. "Thank you Mr Dempsey, you're an angel. Now would either of you like any refreshments or can I tempt you with some of the cook's home made fruit cake?"

"That would be lovely," Makepeace smiled.

"And tea Mrs Makepeace?" Bessie suggested.

"Please."

"Mr Dempsey?"

"You have any coffee?" he asked.

"Of course. I'll be back shortly," she smiled, standing up and moving towards the door. Before she left she turned to them briefly. "Bless you my dears, you're a godsend."

Dempsey rose off the sofa and walked over to the windows, standing behind the curtains to glance out at the gardens.

"Whoever it is, if it is anybody, they obviously don't mean Lord Maybrook any harm or they would have done something by now," Makepeace observed.

Dempsey turned to her. "You don't think there's been any intruders?"

"Well it seems to me that Lord Maybrook is the only person to have noticed anything, and what with his bad health it could just all be in his head."

"Maybe, or maybe someone _is_ tryin' to scare him to death. We should find out more about his family. Did you notice her reaction when his family was mentioned?"

"Hmm. They don't seem to be in the picture though if she's never seen any of them."

Makepeace watched as Dempsey strolled around the room, taking in its contents.

It wasn't long before Bessie returned with a tray of hot drinks and fruitcake. She placed it on a table, poured the tea and handed a cup to Makepeace. Dempsey joined Makepeace again on the sofa.

"Here you go," Bessie said, handing Dempsey the coffee and a large piece of cake on a plate. "And there's more where that came from." Her eyes moved to the rest of the cake on the tray and back to Dempsey. She wore a broad smile on her face. "I know my Albert used to love fruit cake. He'd polish off the whole lot if I didn't keep an eye on him!" she said to Makepeace. Makepeace smiled. "Well, I'm going upstairs to check on Thomas. Please feel free to take a look around although you may find that you have the best view of the grounds from here. Oh and if you should need me just ring that bell over there." She pointed to a brass-handled bell next to the fireplace, smiled and then left them alone.

Dempsey stood up again and paced the room.

"I had an aunt like her once," Dempsey announced. "She used to insist on plantin' big wet kisses right on my face. And she always used to give me that look as if she thought I was real cute." He pulled a face.

Makepeace grinned. "More cake?"

He frowned and shook his head.

Glancing over towards the door he scanned the area around it, smiling when he spotted what he was looking for and moving towards it.

"So, here we are in the haunted castle," he grinned, turning the ceiling lights off. "Better keep the lights down in case we're spotted in here. If we're going to catch the intruder that is. Unless the intruder is of a different type," he lifted an eyebrow. "Then we're gonna be well and truly spooked."

Makepeace rolled her eyes. "It's not a castle and it's not haunted Dempsey."

He wandered back towards the sofa. "You never seen a ghost then?"

"No, funnily enough I haven't. You're loving this aren't you?"

He smiled. "Sure. I remember every Halloween when I was at high school a whole bunch of us used to sneak into the school at night, drink beer, eat pizza and tell ghost stories. Of course mine were always the best. Used to get the girls all worked up," he laughed wickedly.

"Hmm, I bet."

"Wonder if I can get you all worked up," he grinned.

She laughed, crossed her legs and sat back on the sofa, casually placing her arm across its back. "You can try your best but I'm not a teenager anymore remember. You may find that your story doesn't have quite the same effect."

"I can see you're gonna be a tough one. Let's see if I can remember my most spooktacular story then."

She covered her face with her hand and shook her head in disbelief. "Go on then Dempsey and I'll try my best to be afraid.

He smiled. "Well, it was many years ago now in a house not unlike this," his eyes roamed around the room. "And there was a housekeeper named…" he paused and she lifted an eyebrow. "Freeda."

"Quick thinking there Dempsey," she said pointing at him and clicking her fingers.

"Well, Freeda," he grinned, "she was makin' some fruit cake one night when the lord of the house…" he thought for a moment, "Jake…" She shook her head. "John…yeah John he came home from a long journey and he had brought a young boy home with him that he had found wanderin' the streets of London. The boy was dressed all in grey, a grey cap, a grey coat and a sad and solemn face. He told Freeda to look after the boy, Matthew was his name, and to give him some refreshments and some fruitcake. She sat with Matthew in the…" He thought again. "…library and she told him about another time when Lord John had brought home some other stray children. First there was a young girl. She was a wild, dark haired child with angry eyes and a stubborn temperament. She had stayed in the house for only a few days and then she had seemingly disappeared. She used to stare out of the windows at the gypsie passers by and it was assumed that she had absconded with them." Makepeace widened her eyes as if amazed by the story. "The next child was a young boy. He was a very quiet and serious fellow but before long he too mysteriously disappeared. Well then came the third child, another young boy who became quite attached to the housekeeper at the time whose name was…Ann."

"An improvement on Freeda anyway," Makepeace grinned.

"Yeah well the third boy used to confide in Ann and tell her about his night terrors and the ghostly sights he'd encountered. One night he told of a strange figure he had seen in the bathroom. A pale grey face with daunting eyes floating around the room. The second encounter he had was when he'd glanced out of his bedroom window one cold and stormy night. He had distinctly seen two children standing below. The girl's face brought to mind the face he had seen in the bathroom only days before but the boy had such a look of terror about him that it was difficult for him not to look away. And in his chest he could see a dark, black hollow space that sent a chill down the young boy's spine." To her consternation Makepeace found herself beginning to develop an interest in the story. And he was telling it with an amount of finesse too.

"It was then that Ann decided to take her concerns for the young boy to Lord John. She described to Freeda one night when she had searched for him and peeped through the keyhole of his study door to see him bent over a silver goblet of red wine, sprinkling a silvery powder over the cup. When he had left the room she had slipped inside to find a series of papers on his desk. She had read them and they had described a ritual in which it was believed that the universal question of human existence could be answered if the soul of one man could absorb the souls of others. Ultimate power could be achieved this way if the heart of the victims were sprinkled over a goblet of wine. The remnants could be easily discarded by means of a drain or plughole of some sort. She had been startled then by a sudden noise, a sudden…" Dempsey paused. "BANG!" he shouted. Makepeace jumped in her seat. He laughed and she rolled her eyes. "Freeda left the study and went into the hall to see a body at the foot of the stairs. The head was bent alarmingly to one side, the neck broken of the boy who was dressed all in grey. A grey cap, a grey coat and a sad and solemn face." Makepeace sat staring at Dempsey for a few moments before speaking.

"So the boy who Freeda was talking to, Matthew, was the third boy."

Dempsey nodded his head.

"And he was a ghost."

He nodded his head again.

"But wouldn't Freeda have known all along that Matthew was the grey clothed ghost?"

Dempsey paused for thought and narrowed his eyes at her. "She had a short memory span."

"So where did Lord John find Matthew that night and why did he bring him home?"

Dempsey sighed and ran an agitated hand through his hair. "I'm gonna go search the grounds." He made for the door and Makepeace laughed, jumping off the sofa and running after him shouting,

"And if the boy knew he was a ghost then why did he listen to the story in the first place?"

"Will you quit disectin' the story? It ain't no fun tellin' a bloody detective sergeant ghost stories!" he sulked, speeding up as he headed across the hall away from her.

She rushed to catch him up. "Wait for me Dempsey...you can tell me another ghost story...I promise to act more frightened!" she called after him just as he disappeared through an outside door.


	5. Chapter 5

Makepeace caught up with Dempsey in the topiary garden and halted his speedy progress down the path by taking a firm hold of his arm and turning him around. A slight smile hovered on her lips.

"It was a good story Dempsey. You told it well," she grinned.

"You know what? You aint nice," he sulked.

She pouted on his behalf and edged closer to him, fiddling with a button on his shirt. "I'm sorry, I'll never make fun of your ghost stories again." She tried not to laugh.

He decided to milk this for all it was worth. "Yeah well you aint as much fun as the girls at school were."

"I bet I could be more fun," she said with a suggestive look.

He looked delighted. "Yeah? Let's test that out." His arms reached out for her but she put up her hands to bar his way.

"Not at work Dempsey."

"Ahhh, how come you only say those kinda things when we're at work and we can't follow up on things?" he complained. She laughed. He grinned as an idea came to him. "Still, aint nobody out here and like you said, this aint really a proper case anyway so…" He quickly grabbed her hand and pulled her back into the shadows of the hedges.

"Dempsey, we're in somebody else's garden. We can't do anything you know. And we _are _officially working. And…" She was running out of excuses almost as quickly as he'd manoeuvred her towards the bench, sat down and pulled her onto his lap.

"Now what?" She sat facing away from him feeling awkward and tense.

"We listen for ghosts," he whispered into her ear from behind. His warm breath teased her ear. "Let me know if you feel any strange sensations," he added, sweeping her hair aside and brushing the side of her neck with his fingertips.

_Oh god. What have I let myself in for now?_

She anticipated his next move. She knew he was going to kiss her neck, it was her weakness and she suspected that he also knew that. He was beginning to get to know all her weaknesses and that unnerved her. She waited on a knife-edge for the feel of his lips but it was his hand that moved first, travelling from her waist upwards over her ribcage. Suddenly she didn't know what to expect first. Then she felt his other hand travel slowly down the length of her leg. Her mind was struggling to focus properly. His breath was warm on her neck, his mouth near to her skin, very near. Then she felt him, something was lightly brushing the skin of her neck. Was it his lips? Or his tongue? By the time she had realised that it was both his hand had reached her breast and sensations were emanating from everywhere. She struggled to clear her head. She should say something…but it was him who spoke first, whispering against the moist skin of her neck which he had just teased with his tongue.

"You can't hold back forever Harry." He knew she was fighting for control but he could tell from the heat of her skin, her erratic breathing and the tiny movements of her body that she was loosing the battle. She was just getting to grips with the feel of his hand on her breast over her blouse when his fingers reached the hem of her skirt, hovering there and stroking the skin of her calf. God she wished she could clear her head but her body was taking over.

"When are you going to give up the fight?" he whispered, watching her eyes open and close as each new sensation washed over her.

"What makes you think I am?" Her voice sounded odd. It didn't sound like her. She didn't even really know what she was saying.

He laughed, a slow seductive sound. "Oh you will. It's only a matter of time." Then his voice became more serious. "This thing is more than either of us can resist for much longer." His voice had more emotion in it then.

"You can't go further here," she reminded him in a shaky voice. She was far more concerned about what was happening right then. She'd worry about the rest later.

"Trust me to do the right thing Harry," he pleaded. "I only want to pleasure you. I wish you'd stop fightin' me off." He kissed her temple, murmuring against it, "Won't you trust me?"

She did trust him. She felt strangely emotional then and tears prickled her eyes. She turned her head backwards to look up at him. His eyes met hers. They looked soft and somehow vulnerable. Her face was filled with emotion and her head moved backwards, her mouth falling onto his. Their lips clung together in a tender but passionate kiss. It deepened and she lost herself in it. He was shaking. Or was it her? She couldn't tell. She felt his hands at the top of her blouse, slipping the button undone. His fingers caressed the skin he found as he unbuttoned the next and then the next button. His hand moved underneath the material and he held her breast over her bra. She moaned and pressed her mouth harder against his. His thumb stroked, caressed and teased the skin at the edge of her bra and her whole body tingled and ached for more. Then he slipped the bra strap over her shoulder and trailed his fingers back towards her naked breast. She was holding her breath. She could hardly bear the anticipation. Then she felt his fingers brush the underside of her breast and she moved her mouth slightly back from his, inhaling sharply. His hand hovered over every inch of her breast, brushing her skin with the smallest and lightest of touches and driving her to distraction. She put her hand back and grabbed onto the first thing she could find, clutching a handful of his shirt.

"Dempsey!"

He reacted to her plea by finally taking her full breast in his hand and she moaned. Her head fell back against his shoulder and she bit her lip, a pained expression on her face.

Dempsey felt the softness of her skin in his hand, heard her moan and saw the look on her face and he suddenly began to lose his own control.

"I'm so sorry sweetheart, I've got to stop."

She barely registered what he'd said but he removed his hand and lifted the bra strap onto her shoulder again. Then he cupped her face with his hands and kissed her softly before moving to stand up. She slid off his lap and onto the bench in bewilderment.

"I gotta get some air," he said, running a hand through his hair and moving across the lawn. She watched him pace the far and of the lawn whilst her body attempted to adjust to his absence. She knew that he had done the right thing but her entire body screamed for him to come back.


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay it's quite a short chapter but I just couldn't resist ending on the last line!lol!**

Dempsey paced the lawn, trying not to think about the incredible softness of Makepeace's skin in his hand in an attempt to regain control. He hadn't intended to go that far and he felt guilty for having to walk away but she usually halted things before they went that far and he wasn't prepared for her reaction to him. When he'd realised how much she was enjoying his caresses he just wanted to give her more pleasure but before he knew it he was giving in to needs of his own. He'd always been the one in control before with women but with Makepeace things invariably went into overdrive. Hell, he'd wanted to do more, a whole lot more. He'd wanted to see her as well as touch her, see all of her. God knows he would have tried had they been somewhere more private but there they were stuck on a dumb case and all he could do was make any excuse he could to get near to her. It was so frustrating! Would things ever go further between them at a time when he could act upon what he knew they both wanted?

Makepeace sat on the bench and scolded herself for not calling a halt to things before Dempsey had. What was wrong with her? She had thought that she could handle any man in such a situation but Dempsey was proving her wrong time and time again. She hoped to god that he didn't have the wrong impression of her. After all, it isn't as if they have ever really discussed sex before. For all he knew she could be a wild nymphomaniac! Then again, he'd probably love that! Oh god, why was she thinking so much about all of this? Sex had never seemed this complicated before...but with Dempsey...the thought of sex and Dempsey, well it unnerved her for some reason. It made her so edgy and flustered. And what was worse, Dempsey now seemed to know it! Well she couldn't sit there all night.

She rose from the bench, took a deep breath and approached Dempsey across the lawn.

"Come on, let's go back in before you wear the lawn out!" she said wryly.

He stopped pacing and turned to her as if he was about to say something but couldn't find the words. He looked a little distraught.

"Come on," she repeated, linking her arm with his.

They walked back into the hall and through to the lounge in silence but as soon as they were in the room Dempsey turned to speak to Harry.

"I'm sorry...you know for goin' a bit too far back there." He waited for her reaction.

She looked awkward, turning away from him, strolling over to one of the side tables and picking up an antique as if to inspect it.

"Yes well," she risked a quick look in his direction, "It wasn't entirely your fault. I could have showed a lot more control there myself. Let's just put it down to a moment of madness," she grimaced guiltily.

He frowned and walked over to her, taking the vase out of her hand and placing it back on the table to get her full attention.

"Hey, I was the one who'd said I'd control things remember? Besides, you're allowed to have sexual feelin's you know Harry. It aint a crime!"

Her eyes darted away from his. "No, but of course usually when I do it's appropriately..." she stopped in mid sentence when she registered his look of disbelief at her use of the word. "Well, you know what I mean. I don't usually go wild on a bloody garden bench!"

He laughed and gave her an amused lopsided smile. "Yeah but Harry you _should_ go wild. Goin' wild is good." He thought for a moment. "Okay maybe not so much on a garden bench but I tell ya somethin'," he grinned, "as far as I'm concerned your 'appropriate' policy is goin' out the window when I take you to bed Harry. In fact, I'll throw it out the window for you!"

She bit her lip. She didn't doubt it, and the thought both thrilled and disturbed her. He watched the changing emotions flit across her face and then bent closer to whisper,

"You have a sensational body Harry. And I aint even begun to appreciate it properly."

Her eyes moved away from him again and she was reaching for the vase once more. He chuckled.

The moment was then interrupted when Bessie opened the door and entered.

"Is everything okay down here? It's just that I thought I heard noises coming from the garden. Did you see anything?" she asked.

Dempsey's grin widened. "No, I haven't seen anything...yet."


	7. Chapter 7

Bessie requested that they call for her should they see or hear anything amiss and left Dempsey and Makepeace alone again.

"Come sit here," Dempsey said heading for the sofa. "Then we'll both have the best view of the grounds." He patted the space next to him and held out a hand to her. She eyed it dubiously.

"This wouldn't be one of your ploys would it Dempsey?"

He grinned. "You're so suspicious you know Harry." She approached him and he took her hand, pulling her onto the sofa beside him. He turned to face her and stretched his arm across the back of the sofa behind her. "Besides, I think we should continue with the conversation we were just havin'. I was quite enjoyin' that." He gave her a wicked look.

"Hmm, perhaps we'd be safer discussing the case," she said, looking back anxiously at his hand.

"Well, the old man thinks the place is haunted, the housekeeper thinks someone's trying to scare him to death, and I think that I aint gonna get any sleep at all until I take all your clothes off and make wild passionate love to you," he summed up. Her eyes widened and heat flooded her face.

He laughed. "Wow, has someone turned the heatin' up? Ah no sorry, it's just commin' from you."

She slapped his arm. "Behave yourself Dempsey."

"Hey, I think I'm doin' fantastically...considerin'."

She gave a small laugh.

"So...now that we've discussed the case...I was just wonderin'..." he watched her thoughtfully for a moment, "Hmm, maybe not."

She tutted. "Go on then. What were you wondering?"

"Well," he looked uncertain about the question he was going to ask, "actually I was wonderin' a few things, I'm just tryin' to figure out how to ask." She wasn't sure if she wanted him to ask or not. His uncertainty reassured her however that it wasn't going to be something to purposely cause her embarrassment.

"Harry," his voice softened, "when a guy makes love to you... in the past... when he has... was it good? I mean...was it...everythin' you'd wanted?" She stared at him. She really didn't know how to reply. She struggled to think of an answer. "Now you're thinkin' too much Harry," he observed. "Don't think, just tell me."

She smiled. "To tell you the truth, I'm trying to think of how to answer that honestly." He waited. "On a few occasions. Not often," she eventually replied.

His face lit up and she looked a little confused by his reaction. He noticed the look on her face. "Sorry. Don't mind me. I'm just," he focused on a part of the wall behind the sofa. He hadn't expected to find this conversation this difficult. "It's just that..." Bloody hell, why couldn't he string a sentence together properly? He turned abruptly to look at her with sudden determination to just say what he wanted to. "Okay, frankly...I want to be the one." He pulled a face. "I don't actually like to think of anyone else with you."

A warm smile spread across her face and brought emotion to her eyes. She was touched. This encouraged him to ask more. There was so much he wanted to know.

"Somethin' else...since we're on the subject." He hesitated and she smiled.

"Go on."

"Well...your first time. What was that like?"

She suddenly looked awkward. "Dempsey, that's not something I really talk about with people."

"Why not?" he asked. "Harry, we've known each other for a long time now. We've talked about just about everythin', so why not this?"

He sounded so reasonable but this was going to be such a personal conversation, she wasn't sure she could go ahead with it. She glanced around the room as if to find a solution somewhere there, or as if one of the priceless antiques could speak for her.

"Err," she scratched her head. "It was...not exactly what I had expected." She gave a nervous laugh. "You know what girls are like, it's all emotional for them. It's different for men."

He looked surprised by her last comment. "I dunno, I wouldn't say that. I got kinda," he was reluctant to use the word 'emotional', "involved."

She smiled.

"Mind you, the girl I was with, she was a bit more experienced than me and boy was I nervous!"

It was her turn to look surprised. "I can't imagine that."

"Sure. I was just prayin' to get through the whole thing without messin' it all up!"

She laughed.

"Afterwards though, hell, I was like a kid with wings. Thought I did real great at the time. Not sure what she'd say about that now though. Enthusiastic wasn't the word! Might have been a bit too enthusiastic at the wrong time...if you get what I mean."

She held back her laughter.

"I've improved since though," he added quickly. "A lot," he stressed.

She grinned. "I've no doubt."

She was surprised to find herself delighted in the way that he was opening up to her and the way that they were sharing such intimacies. She felt suddenly closer to him in a way that she hadn't felt before, even when they had kissed or touched.

They both smiled, their eyes clinging to each other's warmly.

"Harry."

"Hmm?"

"If we make love," he paused. "I want to make it somethin' you'll never forget. I want to make it all you've ever wanted."

She just stared at him, swallowing a lump in her throat. And then instinctively she reached over, put a hand on his face and kissed him softly.

When she moved back he caught hold of her hand. "Come here for a while," he said, urging her into his arms. She sidled towards him and he put his arm around her as she lay her head on his chest. He put his hand on her head and began to run his fingers absentmindedly through her hair. She felt warm and suddenly drowsy. His fingers were sending such a wonderful tingling sensation through her.

"Are you okay?" he asked, lifting his hand and looking down at her.

"Yes," she smiled. "Don't stop," she said, reaching his hand and replacing it in her hair.

He looked delighted and was only too glad to continue.


	8. Chapter 8

"You like that eh?" Dempsey said, looking down at Makepeace with a smile as he stroked and fondled her hair.

"You have no idea," she said dreamily. He certainly was getting to know all her secrets now. Still, at that moment she didn't care. As long as he didn't stop creating that wonderful, dreamy, tingling feeling with his fingers. He watched as she fought to keep her eyes open.

"Sleep for a while if you want Harry. I'll keep a look out," he assured her.

She shifted her head slightly and her eyes lifted to his face. "I really should stop this habit of falling to sleep when we're supposed to be working."

Dempsey shrugged. "Aint no point in us both stayin' awake all night. Sleep if you're tired, it's gonna be a long stint."

Harry rested her head in its original position and closed her eyes. Before long the magic of Dempsey's hands and the late hour had sent her to sleep.

Makepeace awoke with a start at the loud noise of a door slamming. Her eyes flew open and she struggled to sit up, having to think for a moment where she was. She found herself on the sofa alone. Where was Dempsey? Standing up, she rushed into the hall and headed for the doorway which led to the gardens outside. In the distance she thought she saw a shadowy figure move between the trees. She walked cautiously forward down some steps to investigate but before she had gone far she heard a shout coming from her left and saw Dempsey fast approaching her.

"Harry, you see anything?" he yelled.

She frowned. "I'm not sure." She glanced back out into the darkness of the garden. "What did you see?"

He was slightly breathless when he reached her. "There was someone out here. I chased him but he got away. Couldn't see a lot though."

"We should check on Lord Maybrook and Bessie," Makepeace replied, rushing indoors.

The house seemed to be in complete silence. Perhaps everyone had gone to bed. Makepeace returned to the lounge and rang the bell next to the fireplace.

"Do you think he was trying to get into the house?" Makepeace asked.

Dempsey was scanning the grounds again from behind the curtains. "Yeah, but he must have seen me and ran. He aint out there now."

They waited for what seemed like too long for Bessie to appear.

"We should go and find them," Makepeace said suddenly with concern on her face. Makepeace had read Dempsey's mind. They both abruptly and swiftly headed for the door.

Rushing up the wide staircase they paused when the reached the first floor, looking left and then right down the corridor. There was no sign of life and all seemed quiet.

"I'll take a look this way, you check that way," Makepeace said, turning right and striding away. She passed a series of closed doors. The place seemed deserted and it occurred to her then that they may have made a mistake in not insisting on seeing Lord Maybrook earlier. When she reached the end of the corridor she contemplated opening doors and scouring the house but she decided to return to Dempsey first to see if he had found anyone. She rushed back to the stairway but saw no sign of Dempsey so she continued down the left-hand corridor to find him. The corridor turned a corner at the end and it was there that Makepeace bumped into Dempsey as he was heading back to her.

"Nobody that way then?" Makepeace asked.

"Aint no one here. The rooms are empty," Dempsey replied. They both looked mystified until the sound of a faint voice drew their attention back towards the staircase and they saw an old man dressed in pyjamas standing at the top of the stairs.

When they moved closer to him they could see that he looked dazed, confused and afraid.

"Lord Maybrook?" Makepeace enquired. The man looked up then with alarm. "It's all right. We are the officers from SI10. Spikings sent us."

"They've come back again," he said, his voice shaky. "I saw them. I saw the lights and the faces." His eyes were wide with fear, his hands shaking. He tried to move forward then but he stumbled and Dempsey shot out a hand to support him.

"Aint no one here gonna hurt you Pops. Let's get you back to bed eh. Which way is your room?"

Dempsey put an arm around the man's waist and held him firmly as they slowly made their way back down the corridor towards his bedroom. The man seemed to relax a little once he had Dempsey's support and he began to insist that he was all right and that he didn't really need help, he just wanted the lights and the faces to stop. Dempsey wasn't fooled by the man. He had experienced quite a fright and he reminded Dempsey of his grandfather, never one to ask for help even when he most needed it.

"Hey look, you're helpin' me. I couldn't find your room and we can't be lookin' out for you if we don't know where you are, eh." Dempsey said as he helped him back into the room and up onto the bed.

Makepeace hovered at the door whilst Dempsey saw to the man's needs and made him comfortable in bed. As she watched him she felt strangely emotional, not for the first time that night. Dempsey was such a caring man. To the outside world he was harsh and uncouth, a man from the wrong side of the tracks, a dangerous maverick. And yet time and time again she had seen that he was capable of such compassion. He was a good man with a kind heart. She suddenly longed for all of his sweetness, but she realised with sudden anxiety that once she had it she wouldn't want to let him go. Would it be like trying to cage a bird that needed its freedom? Would he resent her for it in the long run? Or maybe she should just accept things for what they are and cherish whatever happens to develop between them without focusing too much on the future. Could she do that? More to the point, could she not? Could she resist the chance to know what it would be like between them?

"There aint no one here now Pops. Get some sleep and we'll be downstairs until mornin'. Then tomorrow we'll come back and talk about all of this. Sort it all out eh," Dempsey reassured him. The man thanked Dempsey politely and insisted that he would be fine, although Dempsey registered the man's frailty and his shaking body. After enquiring about the whereabouts of Bessie's room, Dempsey left the man, joined Makepeace and closed the door.

"Bessie should be in here," Dempsey said, knocking on the door of the adjacent room. After a few minutes the door was opened by a dazed looking Bessie who had a shawl wrapped around her shoulders.

"Is everything all right?" she asked anxiously.

"There was someone in the grounds. I couldn't catch him but I'm sure he's gone now. We'll stay until morning and come back tomorrow to speak to Lord Maybrook," Dempsey informed her.

Bessie looked shocked. "Oh my goodness I fell asleep in the chair. I should have been there for Thomas," she said, moving past Dempsey and heading for Lord Maybrook's room. Dempsey stopped her before she reached the door. "I have seen to him. He's sleeping now."

Bessie seemed a little abashed. "Oh. That was kind of you. I'll look in on him later then."

"Sure. Get some sleep, we'll be downstairs," Dempsey said.

They returned to the lounge and sat on the sofa once more. Dempsey leant back against the arm and positioned himself so that he could see out of the windows. Makepeace was sat at the other end of the sofa and she followed his gaze but turned back to him when he spoke.

"What do you think you're doing sergeant?" he asked. She gave him a look of miscomprehension. He smiled. "What are you all the way over there for? Come here."

She glanced towards the windows and back again. "The intruder?"

"I'll keep an eye out but I don't think he'll be back, not tonight anyway. Everyone else is asleep, you get to sleep too." He gestured for her to move across the sofa.

"I've already slept, it's your turn," she pointed out.

"Stop arguin'. I'm the look out, come here," he repeated.

"But…" she began.

"Come here you stubborn woman or I'll come and get you," he grinned. "And you're gonna prefer comin' off your own steam than me movin' over there," he threatened.

"I really should…" she tried again but jumped in her seat and swiftly moved across the seats when Dempsey looked ready to pounce.

He laughed and put an arm around her, encouraging her to lie against him. "That's better."

She lay there stiffly for some time before her eyes eventually began to drift shut. As Dempsey sat there he smiled to himself. Okay, so it had been an unusual night but he'd enjoyed it. More often than not he'd spend the evenings at home alone, looking over case files or watching a bit of television before going to bed. But being there he had a purpose. He was protecting the house, Bessie, Lord Maybrook, and of course Harry. He tightened his arms around her and looked down at her face. She had at last fallen asleep. She was so wilful, and independent beyond measure. But he wanted to take care of her, look after her. Would she ever let him he wondered? Was he crazy to expect too much? Especially with a woman like her. She was a lady for god sake, she was born to all of this and she had the security of her father and the whole bloody aristocracy behind her. Still, for now she was there with him and he was going to make the most of the moment.


	9. Chapter 9

Makepeace slept in Dempsey's arms until the early hours of the morning. Although he was incredibly tired by the time daylight began flooding the room, Dempsey had stayed awake. He doubted that he would see the trespasser again however he felt obliged to follow up on his promise to keep a look out on behalf of the old man. When he got his hands on the scum bag that would want to terrify an elderly gent like him he'd string them up!

Makepeace slowly opened her eyes and looked up at Dempsey.

"Mornin' sweetheart. You dream about me?" he asked.

She smiled. "As a mater of fact I did, you were a ghost and you chased me around the garden," she laughed.

"Hauntin' your dreams eh, that's gotta be a good sign!"

She chuckled and stretched, reluctant to move away from him to sit up. She looked back at his face and frowned.

"You look tired," she said reaching a hand up to touch his face. "I should have shared the surveillance."

He shrugged. "Nah, I was enjoyin' watchin' you sleepin' princess."

She laughed and finally sat up. "I hope I didn't snore."

"Nope, you slept like a lady. Exactly like I would have imagined you to."

She smiled. "I suppose we can go now and you can at last get some sleep."

They left a note for Bessie, explaining that the trespasser had not been seen again that night and that they would return late the following afternoon to speak with Lord Maybrook. Makepeace took the car keys and dropped Dempsey off at home, arranging to pick him up later that day for their return visit to Rainington Hall.

Makepeace showered and went to bed when she arrived home but she didn't sleep for long and got up to phone Spikings, filling him in on the night's events. She spent the rest of the day pottering around the house and finally showered again and changed for their evening work. She pulled on a black trouser one piece that was comfortable and warm. Although it was still summer the weather had turned cold that afternoon. She picked Dempsey up and they drove back to the house to speak to Lord Maybrook.

When they arrived Bessie escorted them up to his bedroom.

"Hiya Pops, remember me?" Dempsey said, striding into the room.

Thomas looked up with surprise and his face brightened. "Hello again young man. How are you today?"

Makepeace leant against a wall whilst Dempsey walked over to Thomas and pulled up a chair beside his bed. "I'm doin' fine. How 'bout you?"

"Oh, not so bad today. There's still life in me yet."

Looking at him however Dempsey wondered just how much life was left in him. He looked grey and weak and he seemed to be struggling for breath despite being in bed.

"Listen we caught someone trespassing on your grounds last night. I chased him but he got away. I don't think he wants to do you any harm though. Some people just do dumb things like that for fun. He seemed quite young. We'll stay for a while tonight and if he shows up we'll catch him but there aint really a lot we can do other than scare him off. The law says we can't touch him Pops. Best you can do is get a court order and then if he keeps comin' back you got more to stop him then."

"Damn nuisance," Thomas exclaimed, gazing out of the window onto the garden. "My Vanessa used to love spending time out there," he said dreamily. "I can see her now in the flower garden with her straw sun hat on planting the flowers. There aren't so many flowers anymore," he said sadly.

"Vanessa, she was your wife eh?" Dempsey asked.

"Yes, but she passed away…oh some years ago now…Can't remember how many." He continued to stare out of the window.

"Do you have any other family Thomas?" Makepeace asked tentatively.

He turned to look at her as if he hadn't realised that she was there. He smiled at her but then his expression darkened before he answered.

"As far as I'm concerned I don't have a son."

"Why dya say that eh?" Dempsey asked.

"He's a bad one. Sent him away and now he's gone off to some foreign place down under so that's the end of him," Thomas replied with finality. For a moment Dempsey wondered if the trespasser was Thomas's son but then he figured that he would have to be a lot older than the youngster he had chased the night before. "Have you got family here young man?" Thomas asked Dempsey.

Dempsey grinned at Thomas's use of the words 'young man.' "Nah, I'm not from round here Pops."

Thomas nodded. "I thought so but I didn't like to say."

"My mother lives in New York, that's where I'm from. You been there before?" Dempsey asked.

Thomas laughed. "No, I have never left Great Britain. I couldn't bring myself to. This is where I belong. I'm not like all these youngsters who go travelling the world these days. What brought you here Mr…"

"Dempsey's the name but you can call me Jim Pops," he provided.

Thomas smiled. "Jim, that's short for James is it not?"

"Sure is."

"That's a fine British name young man. Do you have a British ancestry?" Thomas asked.

It was Dempsey's turn to laugh. "Nah, Irish and Italian."

Thomas looked surprised. "Well, with a name like that seems like there must be some British in you somewhere."

Dempsey smiled. "Not like this one here," he turned to look ay Harry. "Harry is a proper English rose." He winked at her.

Thomas noticed the interaction between them with interest. "Come closer young lady. Thomas's eyes aren't as good as they used to be."

Makepeace moved over to the bed and Thomas reached out to take her hand, gently pulling her closer. She sat next to him and his eyes moved over her face.

"Oh I see what you mean Jim, she is an English rose. Beautiful," he said, smiling at her and briefly touching her under the chin. She smiled back but looked a little embarrassed by all the attention.

"Harry's father is Lord Winfield. Do you know him?" Dempsey asked.

"Oh my, yes I think I do. Of course it has been some time since I have been out amongst society. I'd love to hear what's been happening out there. Will you tell me a little about recent events?" he appealed to Harry. He was enjoying the company and he really didn't want them to leave him alone in that silent room.

Harry filled Thomas in on all the recent society events and gatherings, with a few humorous stories from the gossips thrown in to make him chuckle. Spikings was right he was a lovely chap, and although he was extremely frail he was still very lively in character. Thomas then asked how Harry and Dempsey had met and they continued to chat about their first case and how Dempsey hadn't known that Harry was undercover. There was a lot of eye contact and smiling between the two of them at that point and this didn't go unnoticed by Thomas. The sun began to set as Dempsey went on to talk a little about New York and both Thomas and Harry listened to his stories and anecdotes with interest. He didn't often talk about his life in New York and Harry always enjoyed these small glimpses into Dempsey's past.

Dempsey was just in the middle of describing the antics he and his buddies had got up to when he was young when he noticed that Thomas's expression abruptly changed. Thomas had swung his head towards the window when a flash of light caught his eye. Dempsey darted around the bed and looked out across the gardens below.

"Makepeace," he made a head gesture towards the door and she jumped up off the bed.

"We'll just take a look Thomas," she said quickly before joining Dempsey who was sprinting out into the corridor.

They cautiously entered the gardens and Dempsey pointed towards the trees where Makepeace had seen a shadowy figure the night before. He indicated for Harry and him to split up so that they could cover more area and they scoured each half of the garden as they approached the trees. There was a sudden movement and a youth slowly emerged from the foliage only to spot Dempsey and dart back into the shadows for cover. Dempsey pursued him in amongst the bushes and trees whilst Makepeace circumnavigated the thicket and trapped him around the other side. Dempsey finally brought him to the ground, restrained him and dragged him up again so that they could question him. Makepeace got out her badge and showed it to the youth.

"Bloody fuzz," the youth cursed.

"You know what the punishment is for trespassing?" Dempsey growled, holding the youth's hands behind his back.

The youth looked daggers at Dempsey over his shoulder. "Nothing you can do about it. Filth don't have no way of stopping trespassers. Law says so. Aint no punishment for me seen as I just got lost in this here woods."

"Get lost in here most nights do you?" Makepeace put to him.

"Never been here in me life before," he said innocently.

Dempsey cut in. "Yeah? Well we've been watchin' you buddy and the law might not issue severe enough punishments but come back here again and you'll get to experience my own personal brand of punishment, are you hearin' me?" Dempsey threatened, tightening his grip painfully.

"All right, all right geezer. Now you mind letting me go?"

"Sure, once you've told us your name and address," he replied.

"No problem. It's Sylvester, surname's Stallone, living at 100 Soldiers Street, in the Vietnamese district."

"Got a mouth on him aint he?" Dempsey said to Harry. "Makepeace, search him."

"Oooh, think I might enjoy this. She's not a bad bit of totty," the youth grinned.

Dempsey increased his hold on the youth further, causing him to groan in pain whilst Makepeace rummaged through his pockets. She found a wallet but it only contained a few small bank notes and no other items through which they could identify him. After searching his wallet, Makepeace threw it back to him as Dempsey let him go.

"Sorry sweetie, I don't go for little boys with big egos and small…" Makepeace pretended to think, "…personalities."

"Get outta here before your mother misses you," Dempsey growled. The youth darted away and Dempsey turned to Makepeace, putting his arm around her shoulder and directing them back towards the house.

"So Harry, I sure as hell don't have a small…" there followed a purposeful pause, "personality. You gonna go for me?"

She gave him a polite smile. "Just as long as you don't develop an over inflated ego Dempsey."


	10. Chapter 10

After returning to Thomas and reassuring him that they had dealt with the intruder but explaining that they would pay him another visit to see him at a later date, Dempsey and Makepeace left Rainington Hall. Dempsey turned to Makepeace from the driving seat of his car.

"So you ready to party?" he asked. Makepeace looked mystified for a second. "It's Fry's birthday remember?"

"Oh, I'd completely forgotten."

"Sure, there's a party going on in the pub as we speak."

Harry wasn't looking as enthusiastic as Dempsey had hoped. "It's going to more of a lad's night Dempsey and plus I'm still quite tired."

"Hey, it aint just for the guys. It's a work's party and everyone'll be expectin' you there." Dempsey couldn't hide the disappointment in his voice.

"Don't be silly. They will all be half drunk by now. I hardly think they'll be worried if I'm there or not."

"Are you kiddin'? Trust me, everyone'll want you there and I'll get all the blame for not insistin' that you go. Besides, you gotta go, you're my partner," Dempsey was beginning to feel a little desperate, "more than a partner," he added.

Makepeace's eyes widened and she felt a sudden sense of remorse. "I suppose I am being a bit of a stick in the mud."

"Damn right you are!" he came back quickly.

She was just warming to the idea when another thought hit her. "Oh but I need to change."

"What?"

_Bloody women!_

"You don't need to change Harry. You look great. You always look great!" he said with exasperation.

"Yes but…"

Dempsey stopped her by grabbing her by the arms and taking a long look at her clothes. He actually loved that outfit on her. It was the epitome of sexy Harry. The material clung to every inch of her body and if only his X ray eyes could see past that lead lined outfit of hers he could imagine her sitting there minus the clothes!

"Trust me, you look…" he was going to say great again but he just looked her up and down and growled at her instead.

She laughed. "Okay, okay, you've talked me into it!"

His face lit up and he slotted the keys into the ignition.

"Oh but wait!" she exclaimed suddenly.

_God damn it! What now?_

"What?" he said a little sharply.

At this point it was fair to say that part of her was just teasing him now. She gave him a wide eyeed innocent look.

"We haven't got Fry a present. We can't possibly go before we've got him a present."

Dempsey didn't give a damn about buying Fry a present, he just wanted to get to the pub, but since she had finally agreed to go he would have to go along with her for now.

"Okay," he said reluctantly. "I know of a gift kinda gadget type shop on the high street. We can grab him somethin' there."

Dempsey pulled up outside the shop and they ran inside. He scanned the shelves and picked up the first thing that he could get his hands on.

"Okay, this looks good. Now let's go," he said, heading for the till.

Makpeace halted him with a hand on his chest. "Hold on a minute," she held her hand out. "Let me see that." He held up the object. She looked at him in disbelief.

"A filofax! You can't buy him that!"

He looked at it and shrugged. "Why not?"

She rolled her eyes. "Because he's not a filofax kind of person and because it's the most boring present you could have chosen!"

He groaned. "What then?"

"Look for something that you would like to receive. You have to admit that you wouldn't be too impressed with a bloody filofax!"

She had a point. He placed the filofax back and they both looked more carefully for a gift. Dempsey actually began to enjoy testing out the gadgets and considering if Fry would even be able to use them or not!

"Harry," Dempsey called her over to him, "I've got it," he grinned. "It's perfect." He held up some kind of drinking hat which had a beer bottle holder on the top and a tube which ran to reach the wearer's mouth, dispensing the beer.

"Well…I guess it's a lot more Fry's type of thing."

_Bloody men!_

"Let's get it."

They purchased the gift and exited the shop in high spirits.

***********************************************

I have included some extracts here first from previous stories I wrote to give you some background information on some characters that will turn up in this next chapter. Don't panic, it isn't going to pull Harry and Dempsey apart, more force them to deal with their emotions and bring them closer. The first extracts are from a story that I wrote which I haven't put on the site as I wasn't entirely happy with it but there is information in it I think you need to know. The other extract is from "Last Heir" and it explains about Harry's past. Just thought I'd put it here to remind you.

Basically Philippa, Simon, Dan (the guy she liked) and Harry were all school friends.

Extracts from story "Fashion Victim"

They met Philippa in the foyer and made their way to her office.

"Good news, I have just been to see another girl who bought one of the portfolios, she turned up at an agency I know of. This girl was willing to give me more information though and I managed to get the address of the house. The couple's names are Tina and Pete."

"Fantastic. Thanks for this Pippa."

"By the way I have a bit of a surprise for you Harry," she said as the approached her office door.

"Surprise?" They opened the door and a blonde haired man was stood facing the window. As they went in he turned.

"Simon!" Makepeace's face lit up. The man held his arms out to her.

"Harriet, come here you!"

To Dempsey's astonishment Makepeace flew into his arms and he picked her up, spinning her around.

"I've missed you Harriet." He put her down. "Let me look at you. Looking as good as ever, breaking all the boys hearts still?"

Makepeace suddenly became aware of Dempsey standing behind them. She turned around and saw he was wearing an amused expression.

"Oh Simon, this is my partner, James Dempsey. Dempsey, Simon." They shook hands.

"Is she giving you hell James? She always gave us hell at school."

She stabbed him in the ribs with her elbow. "That's not true at all Simon, stop it!" Dempsey laughed. "Oh yeah, she gives me hell."

"Mind you she never gave my roomie hell, did you Harriet?" Harry gave Simon a stern, warning look. He continued, teasing her, turning to Dempsey. "I used to catch her outside our dorm window. Waiting just to get a look at him." He put his arm around Harry's waist. "You had the biggest crush on him, didn't you Harriet?" Harry gave a fake smile and looked slightly uncomfortable, Simon went on, "Well I have to run, just thought I'd pop in to see you but we have to catch up, Pippa has my number, give me a ring and we'll arrange something."

"Definitely, it's fantastic to see you again Simon." He turned to give her a kiss and Dempsey watched with interest as she gave him a quick kiss on the mouth. He had never seen Makepeace so enthusiastic about someone, so at ease with them and he tried, but failed, to picture them at school.

***************************************

They left the car and strolled towards a park, which was not far from the school gates. Entering the park, they wandered along the gravel paths, taking in the greenery and colourful beds of flowers along the way. It was one of the brightest days they had had in a long time, indicating that spring was beginning. Makepeace took off her jacket and hung it over her arm as she walked. They continued around the park in companionable silence until they reached a children's playground.

"Hey, I used to hang around one of these a lot when I was a kid. Only the surroundings weren't quite so great. Used to hang out with Mean Micky Granger to organize poker games and bust the older guys for stealin' the fifth graders lunch money." He walked up to a set of swings and sat down on one, rocking slightly with one foot. She stood next to him, leaning on the support bar.

"Dempsey, you're a cop through and through," she said smiling at him.

"You bet."

Then in a sudden impulsive move Dempsey grabbed Makepeace by the arm and pulled her onto his lap. "Dempsey, what on earth are you doing? I'm thirty, not thirteen!"

"C'mon Makepeace, you gotta get in touch with the young Harry now and then. You know, the Harry that snuck out to wait outside a guy's window to catch a look at him." He grinned at her. She tutted at him and turned away. She was sat sideways on his lap and she was holding onto the swing's chain with one hand but when the swing gave a jolt she put out her other hand blindly and grabbed onto his shoulder. He put his arm around her waist to steady her. Their faces were inches apart and she was looking sideways out into the park while he studied her face in detail. His eyes flitted up and down, taking in her cheekbones, nose, eyelashes, as her eyes scanned the landscape, and finally her glossy lips. They lingered there.

She could feel him scrutinizing her as she glanced around the park. His face was so close that she daren't look at him, she knew should move but she felt suddenly unable to do so.

"So what'd this guy have then to make you so smitten with him Harry?"

"Oh I don't know Dempsey, it was rather a long time ago, I can't really remember."

"C'mon Harry, you had the hots for him, admit it."

"Well… he did have a rather cheeky grin and a lovely pair of brown eyes." She suddenly became aware of the intimacy of the situation, as well as his intense looks, and to her mortification she found herself blushing furiously. He noticed this, laughing out loud. She gave him an aloof look out of the corner of her eyes.

"So d'ya kiss this guy then, with the brown eyes?"

"Dempsey, come on you can't expect me to tell you that."

"Why not?" he said as his hand started to stroke her back, up and down her spine. She bit her lip and her breathing quickened. "C'mon Harry did you kiss him?" His hand travelled up to her shoulder and over it to lightly trail down her bare arm.

"Oh okay, yes I kissed him." And her blush deepened.

"Was it good? What you'd waited for?" His eyes were fixed on her lips. She turned to look at him and held her breath at the look on his face. His fingers were stroking circles on her arm.

Suddenly the swing jolted as a young boy ran past, chasing a football. Makepeace looked up and realised that the children were beginning to come out of the school, she jumped off his lap.

"Come on Dempsey, the children are coming out now, we had better go and find Sarah."

"Chicken!" he called after her.

**Extract from story "Last Heir"**

Dempsey sat back, looking at Winfield with interest. A question filled his head but he hesitated to ask it. Curiosity got the better of him.

"D'she want to marry him?"

Winfield looked surprised. "She wasn't pushed into it, but I think she married him for the wrong reasons."

"Yeah?"

"If I had wanted to get involved, I would have paired her with that school friend of hers, Simon I think his name was." Dempsey looked up suddenly at the mention of that name.

"Simon?"

"Yes, a lovely chap, and he adored her but she was oblivious to him. Harry being Harry preferred his buddy, a more audacious fellow.(Dan) The problem with her though is that she hides all her feelings inside and this boy she liked eventually left. She wasn't herself after that and then she met and married her husband. It all happened way too quickly if you ask me."

Dempsey was fascinated. "This Simon guy, you think if he'd have told her how he felt she'd have hooked up with him?"

"I think she still sees him now and again but they aren't a couple. I don't think he was her type but who knows in time, Harry never fails to surprise me." He looked at Dempsey then and reconsidered. "I could be wrong though, a lot has changed in her life recently." Dempsey frowned then as another thought hit him. "And this other guy who left, she seen him since?" He knew he was prying but he had to know.

"She's never mentioned it to me."

"You think this Simon is still in touch with him?"

"Well if he is, he wouldn't want Harry to know about it."


	11. Chapter 11

When they entered the pub the party was in full swing and everybody cheered as they approached the bar. Fry was sat surrounded by the other officers who were encouraging him do drink a whole pint of beer in one go. Makepeace was surprised to see Spikings stood nearby watching the proceedings.

"Hiya boss, no fishing tonight?" Dempsey asked.

"No Dempsey, someone's got to keep an eye on this lot!"

"Hey, you want a beer?" he offered Spikings.

Spikings shook his head. "Was thinking of something more along the lines of a whiskey but they don't have my usual brand."

Dempsey didn't seem bothered and ordered him a whiskey anyway. He also ordered a drink for Harry, himself, and of course for the birthday boy.

"Here, this is for you," Dempsey said, handing Fry the beer, "but you're gonna want to look at what we got you first."

Makepeace handed him the bag and he pulled out the beer contraption to the delight of the surrounding officers and himself.

"Happy birthday Fry," Makepeace laughed. Fry grinned and turned his cheek to her for a kiss. She tutted but kissed him on the cheek and everyone cheered and applauded. Fry looked around the group with a grin like a Cheshire cat and jumped off his stool, putting his arms out towards Dempsey. Dempsey looked horrified.

"You come any nearer and you aint gonna make it to your next birthday!" he warned. Everyone laughed.

Fry tried the hat on to the sound of more hilarity and a beer bottle was placed on top of his head.

Dempsey and Makepeace stayed immersed in the group, enjoying their drinks whilst the officers recounted earlier events and described how Fry had tried in vain to charm the bar woman. Chas appeared a little later and pulled Harry slightly back from the group to speak to her.

"There were some people in here earlier looking for you Harry. Some friends of yours."

Harry looked puzzled.

_Angela? But what would she be doing here?_

"Have they left?" she asked.

Chas shrugged. "Haven't seen them for a while," he said moving away to the bar.

By this time Dempsey had noticed the conversation and he bent to speak to Harry.

"What's up?"

"Nothing. I think Angela is here somewhere. Chas said some friends of mine were looking for me."

"Oh." He looked a little surprised but seemed satisfied with the situation and finished his drink, returning to the bar to order more for him and Harry.

Harry scanned the crowded room for Angela but her heart missed a beat when she caught a quick glimpse of someone disappearing behind a group of people at the other side of the bar.

"You want wine again Harry?" he asked, turning back to look at her. He frowned in puzzlement when he saw the look on her face. Her mouth fell open in shock and she immediately coloured up, quickly averting her eyes, turning away and running a hand through her hair.

"What is it?" he asked, leaning over to talk to her. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Oh nothing," she said with a smile that didn't really seem genuine. "You and your ghosts!"

He went back to ordering the drinks but kept his eye on her as she tentatively glanced back to the other side of the bar. She saw nothing and shook her head abruptly, thinking that she had been imagining things.

Dempsey eventually handed her a new glass of wine but before she could take it she swung around when someone tapped her on the shoulder from behind.

"Pippa!" she exclaimed in shocked surprise. One glance at Pippa there confirmed that she hadn't been imagining what she saw. If she was there then it had to have been _him._

"Hi darling," Phillipa said, kissing her on both cheeks, "I heard some dreadful news that you'd been shot and I phoned your office straight away when I couldn't get hold of you. You can't imagine how relieved I was when the chap explained that you were out of hospital and were well enough to return to work. He said that you were out of the office today but he told me about the birthday bash and that you'd be here tonight so here I am."

"It's great to see you," she said, looking over her shoulder to see if there was anybody apparently with her.

"So I want to hear it from you darling, are you okay?" Phillipa asked.

"Yes, really I'm fine now," Harry assured her. "Who are you here with Pippa?"

"Well, that's another story. You're never going to guess," she said with excitement.

Harry thought she could guess. "Who?" she asked.

"Simon of course and…Dan." So it was him. Harry's heart began to race nervously. "He got in touch a few weeks ago and when he heard about the shooting he was desperate to come along tonight to see you," she explained.

"Ah," Harry looked lost for words and there followed a short tense silence.

"I didn't do the wrong thing did I? I thought you'd like to see him again."

"Err, well…" she thought of how to reply. "…does he know I'm here yet?" she asked in a quick whisper.

"No, I don't think so," Phillipa answered, looking perplexed.

"So…you could say that you couldn't find me and…" She was grasping at straws. "You can't really do that can you?" Harry realised.

"Not really, why what's wrong?" Phillipa asked.

Harry sighed. "It's just that I haven't seen him for years and years and god Pippa what would I say to him? I can't possibly face him."

Phillipa laughed. "Calm down Harry, he's not going to bite your head off!"

Harry groaned. "Okay, it's fine. I'm just not myself tonight."

"I'll go and bring them over," Phillipa said, turning to move away.

Harry grabbed her arm and pulled her back. "Wait!" she thought for a moment. "Would you like a drink? I know I could do with another drink."

Phillipa looked at her as if she'd gone momentarily mad. "I've got one over there."

"Yes, and you've got one here," Dempsey said handing her the glass she hadn't yet taken off him.

She jumped at the sound of his voice. "Oh yes, I'd forgotten."

By the time she had turned back, Phillipa had gone.

Dempsey watched Harry's flustered face and wondered why she was so reluctant to see this Dan person that Phillipa had talked about. He had a vague recollection of a conversation with Harry's father about her school friends and the whole thing made him nervous.

Harry drank the whole glass of wine in two goes and looked out anxiously into the crowds, waiting for Phillipa to return. When she spotted Dan for the first time in twelve years she was surprised at how much she felt like an eighteen year old girl again. She had imagined scenarios of seeing him after all that time and wondered what it would be like but she hadn't imagined feeling exactly the same, nervous and tongue tied. She smiled at him as he approached.

"Hello stranger," she said.

He grinned at her. "Harriet," he said, kissing her on the cheek, "look at you!" He held her hands out to her sides and looked her up and down. "You look a bit different to the last time I saw you!"

She laughed nervously. "Well, it has been a few years Dan."

"Hello Simon," she said with more affection, kissing him when he emerged from behind Dan.

"Harriet," he smiled, holding her face with one hand and kissing her cheek. "How are you sweetheart? We heard that you'd been shot!"

"I know, but as I said to Phillipa I'm fine now," she replied. Simon didn't look entirely happy but smiled again and said that he was glad. Then Harry heard Dempsey clear his throat loudly behind her and she turned suddenly.

"Oh, everyone, this is my partner James. You know Phillipa and Simon don't you?" she said to Dempsey.

"Sure," he smiled at them.

"And I'm Dan," Dan said, reaching across to shake Dempsey's hand. Dempsey smiled but the smile didn't touch his eyes as they shook hands.

"So, are you still travelling around Dan?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, still doing the photography and I never seem to have time to stay in one place for long but I still get such a kick out of it. I can't complain," he replied.

"James is from New York Dan, have you been there?" It was a pointless question, she knew that he would have but she was struggling to keep her cool and it was all she could think of to say at the time.

"Yes," Dan looked at Dempsey, "I have been there many times." Dempsey didn't feel like adding to that conversation. Dan turned his attention back to Harry.

"Well you certainly have changed a lot Harriet," he turned back to Dempsey. "She used to be so quiet at school. Would never say a word. Still she was definitely the sweetest girl in the class eh Simon," he noticed Phillipa's face and amended that. "Apart from you of course Pip." Phillipa didn't look impressed and Dempsey was pleased. Let him try and dig himself out of that hole. Dempsey would enjoy watching him struggle. Dan tried to change the subject. "Yeah so she was quiet, apart from if you gave her a dare eh Pip."

This did actually bring a smile back to Phillipa's face. "Yes," she laughed. "You were terrible for that. She was hopeless to resist a dare," she said to Dempsey.

Dempsey raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Oh yes, remember the swimming dare," Dan said, receiving a look of horror from Harry.

"Yes, well that was a long time ago now," she frowned. "Are you still in touch with Peter Dan?"

Dempsey retreated to the bar to join Spikings. He'd had enough of their old school reminiscences and he'd leave them to carry on in the hope that the friends would leave soon. He finished his drink with Spikings, feeling suddenly less in the mood for the energy and banter of Fry's group.

Dempsey could feel himself becoming more and more angry as the time passed and Harry was still stood talking to Phillipa, Simon and Dan. The final straw for him was when Dan reached across the bar next to Dempsey to ask the bar woman for a piece of paper and a pen to write down Harry's phone number on it. He glared at Dan and then turned back to the bar, threw some bank notes down and strode away towards the exit. Spikings shook his head and caught Harry by the arm, gesturing with his eyes to Dempsey who was on his way out of the bar. Harry looked mortified and raced after him. She caught up with him in the porch and blocked his way.

"Where are you going?"

"Oh you had noticed then," he said angrily.

"What? You're annoyed because I'm talking to my old school friends?" she asked.

"No Harry. You go ahead, I'm going home," he said, trying to move past her.

"No you're bloody well not!" she came back. "Firstly because you are the one who dragged me here in the first place and secondly because you can't drive now, you've had too much to drink." The second reason wasn't entirely a good one as he would have to get home at some point but she was using every reason she could think of.

He had already fished the car keys out of his pocket and was holding onto them so she grabbed them out of his hands. Dempsey suddenly had to get away from her, if he didn't he feared that he would say something that he would really regret. He pushed past her and charged down the street. She followed, shouting after him.

"Where are you going now? Dempsey! If you've got a problem with me then don't you think that we should talk it through? Dempsey!"

She stormed after him but had trouble keeping up at the pace he was walking until he reached the SI10 building and strode into the office. He headed straight for Spikings's office, found Spikings's bottle of Whiskey and poured himself a drink. She appeared at the door, panting for breath and watching him with a frown.

"You know if he finds out you're drinking that he'll…" she didn't get to finish.

"To hell with it!" He was leaning against the desk in front of her with fury in his face. "That's just like you aint it Harry. Always follow the rules. Well I don't give a damn!" He pointed at her with the whiskey glass in his hand. "You want some advice? Cut the bullshit and break a few rules now and then. Maybe then you'll make a decent cop!"

Of all the things to say, that angered her most. After all they had been through he was still throwing doubts on her policing skills! She moved forward and shot out a hand then to slap him but it caught the whiskey glass on the way, spilling some of the contents. When she saw this she had a better idea, she snatched the glass out of his hand and threw the rest of the whiskey into his face.

Suddenly he saw red, jumping up, grabbing her by the arms and thrusting her aside in a change of heart as he went for the door again to get away from her. She had other ideas though and blocked him again. There ensued a fierce struggle during which somehow Makepeace ended up backed against the wall and away from the door long enough for Dempsey to leave. By that time however Dempsey's mind was far from leaving her, he wanted her there, against that wall and before she knew what was happening his mouth was crushing hers.

"You're so damn frustrating!" he growled against her lips.

"You're such a bloody arrogant bastard!" she growled back.

"Why don't you just shut up!" he said, cutting off the words that sprung to her lips by replacing his mouth. "You drive me to distraction you know Makepeace, why can't I get you outta my damn head?!"

"Why can't I get you out of mine?" she came back. Feeling his hands roaming she grated out angrily, "You've got to bloody well stop this!"

"You bloody well stop it!" he shouted back.

"I can't!" she said in frustration.

"Well then how the hell do you expect me to!"

Suddenly his hands were clawing at her back, desperate to find a means of access to her through the clingy material of her cat suit. "You drive men insane, do you know that?" he growled into her ear. "You can look but not touch, little miss prim and proper covered up from head to toe and yet still you manage to look as sexy as hell with your lacy transparent tops and your clothes that show off every curve of your damn sizzling hot body! _How the bloody hell do you get into this thing?"_ he grated out. She stilled suddenly. With her head leant back against the wall she stared at him, her eyes boring into his. There was a strange far away expression on her face and when she spoke it was as if the words weren't coming from her.

"We can't do this, this is insanity."

He stared back and for a few moments it was as if time itself had stood still. Then she shattered the silence with her following exclamation.

"Ah to hell with it!"

And in bewilderment he was watching her as she tugged and grappled with the buttons of his shirt, freeing only two before she gave up and lifted the whole thing over his head. She put her hands on his shoulders and began the onslaught with her mouth on his neck; quickly progressing to his chest. She kissed and tasted and moaned.

_God damn it! I've died and gone to heaven!_

Then his hands were back behind her searching for a fastening. "Help me out here for god sake!"

"You're on your own lieutenant, I've got other things to be getting on with," she mumbled as her hand slid over his behind.

If he hadn't been so aroused and frustrated he would have laughed at her words. She sounded as if they were discussing sharing out the paperwork!

He threw his head back in utter torment at her hands and his inability to reach her bare skin. Then his hands left her back and he grabbed her around the waist instead, ducking to put his mouth on her breast over the material. He could feel her aroused peak even before he began sucking and licking. She gasped and pushed her upper body even closer to him but before long he was torturing her as much as she was torturing him. She pulled him back up to face her and their mouths collided together, their tongues moving in and out of each others mouths in a mockery of what they both wanted most.

She was completely out of control; she wasn't even aware of reality anymore. She'd never experienced anything like this and she wasn't going to die without experiencing it all. He held her tightly from behind and she suddenly jumped up against him, wrapping her legs around his middle. He cursed loudly. He'd never imagined that she'd be so passionate, so eager and he was so unprepared for it. Now, save for the covering of their clothes, they were making love. He could feel her heat against his throbbing arousal; she could feel the hardness of him pressed against her as she slid up and down the wall.

"Harry!" he suddenly shouted out, "I can't take this no more!"

He suddenly let her drop to her feet but seconds later he was turning her around so that she faced the wall.

"I'm gonna get into this thing if it damn well kills me!"

He pressed himself hard up against her briefly, praying that she'd stay there long enough for him to figure out the back fastening of her cat suit. Eventually to his utter relief he found the zip that was hidden under a button at the back of her neck. Teasing her with sensual little kisses there he proceeded to undo the button and pull down the zip, exposing the smooth creamy skin of her back.

"All the times we've been in here Harry. All the times I've watched you, wanted you, dreamed about you," he whispered as his hands began to caress the softness of her back. She shivered with his words, with the feel of his breath in her ear and his hands on her skin. "I don't know what I did different today but I sure as hell aint ever gonna forget this moment for as long as I live."

His hands had now moved down to her waist where the zip stopped and he slid them forward to stroke her stomach, moving gradually upwards, stroking, teasing, caressing. When she felt his touch run over her rib cage she knew what was to come.

His hands ached to hold her breasts in them. They moved restlessly upwards, seeking out the prominent curvature. At last they met with the undersweep of the soft contours they sought and she was tingling with warmth, floating with the rhythmic caresses of his hands. Then he took the full weight of her breasts and a soft sigh escaped her lips. She leaned back against him, lifting her arms up to place them around his neck. Her movement gave him full access to her breasts but it also brought the lower half of her body snug against his. He was torn suddenly and he found his one hand leaving her breast and naked skin to grab her hip and pull her even harder into him. She seemed to mould to him but he needed more.

Harry felt Dempsey's fingers fondling the most sensitive part of her breast and her desire began to build again. His hands were rough and hard and big but capable of such arousing tenderness. Then he caught her skin between his fingers and gently applied pressure, gradually increasing it. Without warning a white hot heat shot from her breast to the most intimate part of her and she gasped with the shock of it, reaching behind her and sinking her fingers into his behind.

Suddenly he'd lost control and he swung her around, picking her up bodily and carrying her over to the desk. With one swift movement he swept his arm across its surface, scattering papers and objects onto the floor. He sat her down and rubbed his hands up her legs, moving to stand in between them. He pulled her forward so that he could feel her heat again against his arousal.

"I'm gonna take you here Harry 'cause I can't bear not havin' you…at least once. Even if you end up with some other guy. At least once I'd know that you were mine!" She went to reply but he stopped her by placing two fingers on her lips.

She propped herself backwards onto her arms but when he thrust hard against her her strength gave way and she lay back on the desk surface. He reached towards her shoulders and began to peel the material from her.

Suddenly they both froze. There was a noise outside.


	12. Chapter 12

**Okay so here's a quick in between chapter. After all your comments from the last chapter I actually changed my mind about what I was going to write here. See what you make of it.**

"Did you hear that?" Makepeace whispered. Seconds later they heard the distant sound of laughter and the slam of a car door on the street outside.

Dempsey shrugged. "Must just be kids outside," he said, leaning forward to kiss her neck.

She stiffened. "What if it's not?"

"It is, it is," he murmured against her skin, praying that she wouldn't go cold on him.

"What if it's someone from the party?" she went on.

"No, no it's definitely not that," he replied adamantly. Dempsey didn't think that his blood pressure could cope with the ups and downs of the evening, particularly the down if she called a halt to things now!

Then Makepeace heard a noise which most definitely came from within the building. "Oh god, there's somebody coming in!" she exclaimed in a panic, pushing Dempsey away, jumping up and tugging at her zip with shaking hands.

_Oh god not Spikings! Please not Spikings!_

Dempsey began frantically searching for something whilst Makepeace attempted to retrieve the objects which had fallen from Spikings's desk. She stopped suddenly and looked at him.

"Where the hell's your shirt?" The unmistakable sound of footsteps was getting louder, "Find it, I'll delay whoever it is," she said rushing out of the door.

The outer office was in semi darkness and it was clear that the person was in the corridor outside. Makepeace headed for the door but then hesitated. She realised that if it was Spikings she had absolutely no idea what reason she could give for them being there. She wracked her brains to come up with something convincing to say. If she didn't have a good enough excuse he would undoubtedly see through it and know that something was going on. She had to calm down; she looked and felt guilty at that moment. The person coughed. Was that a Spikings cough? It definitely came from a male. It had to be him. Her heart jumped about in her chest. God she hoped that Dempsey had his shirt on by now!

She was stood in the middle of the office at that point anticipating the door opening but she knew that if Spikings walked in and saw her like that it would look suspicious. She had to be doing something. She dived for her desk and sat down, reaching for a file. What the hell was she doing? It's hardly likely that she'd pop back to the office in the middle of the party to catch up on paperwork! Too late, the door was opening.

The person entered and she looked up at him. He frowned.

"What the hell are you doing here Makepeace? You can leave the paperwork for tonight!" he said, strolling towards the door behind which she prayed Dempsey was fully dressed.

Dempsey heard someone at the office door and panicked. What was he supposed to be doing there? He glanced down, grabbed a file and leant against the desk.

"Do you really expect me to believe that you two are here to catch up on work?" the person said with disbelief.

Dempsey looked up from the file and decided to resort to plan B. "You caught us out. We've helped ourselves to the whiskey but we figured we needed some. Makepeace and I had a bit of shoutin' match and…well now you'll be glad to know that working relations are back to normal," Dempsey explained.

"Hmm," he glanced around the room and noticed some papers and pens on the floor around the desk. "Well, I came here for the whiskey so you'd better hand it over." Dempsey replaced the cap on the whiskey bottle and handed it to him. "Next time you should think twice before you come sneaking in here to do… whatever it was you were doing," he said, taking the bottle. "There are a lot of people expecting you back at the pub. I strongly suggest that you get back there." The person turned to walk away but paused before he left. "Oh and Dempsey, that file you're reading…"

"It's the Maybrook case," Dempsey cut in defensively.

"Well that may be so, but you might like to pick the contents of it up off the floor before you start reading it!"


	13. Chapter 13

"Come on, we're gonna have to get outta here," Dempsey said, grabbing Makepeace by the hand and swiftly leaving the SI10 building.

"Hold on!" she said, pulling him to a halt by the outer wall, "what happened in there? Did he know?"

Dempsey thought that he must have known something. "Nah, he just wanted the whiskey so I acted guilty 'bout that."

"Are we going to be pulled up for this?" she asked, biting her lip.

"Spikings is in a good enough mood tonight. Besides, he'll not know. It'll be all right," he reassured her, putting an arm around her shoulder and turning to walk away. Makepeace shrugged off his arm and swiftly turned, blocking him against the wall with one hand planted against it, the other on her hip.

"Wait just a minute, we have something to talk about."

Dempsey made a slow assessment of her dominant stance. "We do?"

Her gaze was unwavering. "Yes Dempsey, we do." He raised an eyebrow and she continued after a short pause. "One, why did you storm out of the pub? And two, what on earth was all that about 'only having me once' and me being with 'some other guy'?"

Dempsey's confidence wavered then as a frisson of anxiety passed over him, particularly after hearing the last question.

"I left because…I was tired," he shrugged.

She huffed. "Come on Dempsey, surely you can come up with something better than that!"

"Yeah well, you were busy and I didn't feel in the party mood."

Her eyes scrutinised him.

"C'mon, let's go now," he urged again.

She refused to budge. "Wait a minute, you haven't answered my second question."

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Well… you aint exactly ugly, I assume that you'll be with other guys." That wasn't how he had wanted to reply but he felt trapped. What else could he say?

Her heart sunk with disappointment. He made it all sound so bloody casual!

She went to move her hand then but suddenly changed her mind. "No, hold on, I don't care what you think is going on here between us but I'm not bloody well having you paint me out to be some loose woman, that's not fair!" she said, jabbing him in the chest with a finger to drive home her point.

"That wasn't what I meant," he replied in a slight panic.

"Oh yes it was, because you obviously think that I do that," she pointed back towards the office, "kind of thing all the time, and then," she looked to the sky with an expression of hurt and disbelief, "go out and find another guy!"

"No, no I don't think that at all." He growled, frustrated with himself for not being able to say the right thing. "It's that Dan guy," he said suddenly.

She watched Dempsey for a second before speaking. "What about him?"

"You had a big thing goin' on between you two and now that he's back…well I thought…"

"You thought what?" she pushed.

"He was askin' for your number Harry! And I saw the way you reacted when you knew he was in the pub and when you saw him again."

"How did I react?" she asked.

He frowned. "All jittery and nervous. I aint seen you like that with anyone before."

"That's because it's been twelve years since I've seen him! And… well he was my first lov…" she stopped when she saw the look on his face.

_First lover? First love? What? Don't think I wanna know._

"Well, we got emotionally involved anyway," she finished.

"Right. So you gonna get emotionally involved again?" The question sounded more like an accusation.

"Don't be ridiculous, I haven't seen him for twelve years! There's nothing between us."

He didn't look that pleased with her answer. "Not now there aint but you gonna see him again? Date him?"

_What a ridiculous question. What does he think is going on between us? I thought __**we **__were dating._

"Look Dempsey, I'm going back to the pub," she said, suddenly turning around and moving away. She turned back to him however after having walked a little across the car park. "By the way, see him again, I may do if he is with Pippa or Simon but as for dating him, I wouldn't date him again if he got down on his knees and begged me to!" With that she stormed off.

Demspey's face was a picture of surprise and delight. He raced after her.

"Harry," he shouted, catching her up and turning her around. He looked at her questioningly as if he couldn't believe what he had just heard.

She sighed. "He was a complete bastard Dempsey! He can go do his photography in Timbuktu for all I care. Now are we going back to the party or not?"

His face broke out into a huge smile and he placed his arm back around her shoulder, walking with her.

"Harry," he began.

"Yes."

"After we have…if we ever…you know, find a better place to…well you know, d'ya think we could make sure everyone's at home and go back there to try that again?"

She stopped walking, turned to him and burst out laughing, covering her face with her hands.

He grinned. "It was…_soooo_ hot!"


	14. Chapter 14

Dempsey and Makepeace re-entered the pub and headed to the bar to order more drinks. Phillipa spotted Harry and mouthed,

"You okay?"

Harry nodded and smiled.

Dempsey was a little disappointed to see that Makepeace's friends were still there but he made a conscious decision not to dwell on the fact. After passing Makepeace another glass of wine he sat on a bar stool with his back to the bar, picked up his bottle of beer, swept an arm around Makepeace's waist and pulled her back into the circle of his arms. He linked his hands possessively in front of her and waited to see if she would protest. To his surprise she didn't protest at all but placed her free hand over his and sipped her wine.

Makepeace could sense Spikings just a few stools away from them but she daren't risk a look in his direction. Instead she focused her attention on Fry's crowd but was a little disconcerted to see that many of the officers were watching Dempsey and her with great interest.

Dempsey's attention was only on one person however, Dan. He was stood a little way from them, leaning against a pillar, with Phillipa and Simon chatting to his left. Dan was not listening to the conversation around him though, he too was only focused on one person, Dempsey. His eyes moved from Dempsey's hands around Makepeace's middle to Dempsey's face. Dempsey's eyes were slightly narrowed, a cold, emotionless look about them as he stared steadily back at Dan. Dan was by no means put off by Dempsey's glare and he continued to hold eye contact with him. With his eyes still on Dan, Dempsey moved his lips to Makepeace's ear and whispered something. She smiled and he nuzzled her neck a little before taking another swig of his beer and moving his eyes back to Dan. Dan's expression hardened and, although he still refused to break eye contact with Dempsey, he lifted his glass of whiskey to his mouth, drained the contents, handed it to Simon and disappeared into the crowds. Dempsey watched him go and strained to see in-between the people, keen to know where Dan was moving to. It wasn't long before Dempsey spotted him by the exit. Dan opened the door, hesitated and turned to take one more look in Makepeace's direction before turning again and leaving the pub.

Unbeknownst to Harry or Dempsey a broad grin spread across Spikings's face behind them.

Makepeace turned around to look at Dempsey. "He's gone now, hasn't he?"

Dempsey nodded but looked slightly unsure of how this would make her feel.

"So are you happier now?" she asked.

Dempsey wasn't sure if she was angry with him all of a sudden and he was finding it difficult to know how to reply.

She smiled at him. "Well if even if you're not, I am!"

He laughed. "Yeah well I aint exactly gonna miss him!"

She smiled again and reached forward to kiss him on the cheek. "I'm going to go and have a quick chat with Pippa now."

"Sure," he smiled.

Harry was surprised to see that Pippa had apparently vanished, leaving Simon standing on his own.

"She hasn't deserted you has she?" Harry said to Simon.

"Not exactly, she's gone to powder her nose," he replied.

"Ah. Think I'll join her," Harry said, pushing her way through the crowds to the ladies rooms at the back of the pub.

******************************

Dempsey joined Spikings and observed the glass of whiskey in his hand. From further down the bar Chas noticed that Dempsey had moved and headed in their direction.

"You got the right whiskey now then boss?" Dempsey asked.

Spikings looked at his glass and frowned. "It's not the best in here but it's either stay and drink this or go home to the wife and she's having a meeting tonight with a coven of old crones from the WI. The whiskey seems like an entirely more satisfactory proposition at the moment."

Dempsey smiled but then looked a little confused. "Aint you seen Chas yet then?"

Chas just about reached Dempsey in time and jostled him sharply as he walked past, giving him a purposeful glare when Dempsey turned around.

"I see you're getting used to the house whiskey now Sir," Chas said to Spikings.

Spikings looked from Chas to Dempsey with suspicion but then he reminded himself that he was off duty now and so he was better off not knowing what they were rattling on about.

********************

Makepeace found Phillipa in the ladies room reapplying her lipstick.

"Harriet," Phillipa began when she saw Harry, replacing her lipstick in her handbag and turning away from the mirror to speak to her. "I was worried about you when you ran out of the bar earlier. Is everything okay now?"

"Yes, I'm fine. I just wanted to apologise for leaving so abruptly."

"Don't worry about that." Phillipa sighed and looked at Harry guiltily. "I suppose that it was a mistake me bringing Dan tonight. I'm sorry darling, I didn't realise. Why didn't you tell me that you and James are an item now?"

Harry looked a bit uncomfortable. "Well I'm not entirely sure _what _we are at the moment, if we are an item or not."

Phillipa grinned. "Come on Harriet, you only had to _talk_ to Dan and you should have seen James's face, he was positively green with envy and livid with Dan. And I've known you long enough now to know when you really like someone a lot. Sitting in the middle of a pub with his arms wrapped around you tells me that you like him a lot."

Harry blushed slightly and looked to the floor. "I can't pull the wool over your eyes can I?"

"No you can't and to be honest I don't know why you would want to. Don't make the same mistakes you made with Dan. Okay, I know that he didn't treat you right but I have the feeling that he never really knew just how much you felt for him. If you like this James as much as you say then let him know it."

"It's not that easy with him Pippa. Mostly because I work with him and... well I know that there's something between us but if I tell him exactly how I feel and he doesn't feel the same, I don't know how I could carry on working with him."

"What makes you think that he doesn't feel the same?"

She sighed and ran a hand trough her hair. "He's not that kind of guy Pippa. He's told me himself that he doesn't fall in..." she corrected herself, "...fall for women in that way easily."

Phillipa looked surprised. "Are you sure that's what he said?"

"Well, something like that," Harry said sheepishly.

"Hmm," Phillipa folded her arms and looked at Harry with despair. "I think that you and I need to discuss this further. Come on, let's go and get another drink."

**************************************

Dempsey pulled Chas to one side and spoke to him in a hushed voice. "What was that all about? You aint given the boss his whiskey yet?"

Chas seemed quite flustered. "Err, well it seems as if I've come across a small hitch. Damn, I only wanted to keep him here for a bit longer as them lot kept saying that he never joins in with work social gatherings. He was complaining about the whiskey so I thought that fetching his own whiskey from his office would placate him for a while. Turns out it was a bad idea to get involved."

"Yeah, why? What's the hitch?" Dempsey asked.

"Well luckily Spikings knows nothing about me going to collect his whiskey but if he finds out," Chas made a hand gesture across his throat to indicate what would happen.

"Chas, stay cool. Just hand over the whiskey. I'm sure he'll appreciate what ya did."

Chas shook his head furiously. "No, you don't understand. I've lost it! One of those drunken morons over there has bloody well lifted it!"

Dempsey couldn't help but chuckle. "Well you're a cop Chas, I'm sure you'll catch the culprit!"

Chas went to move away then but Dempsey took hold of his arm before he left. "Chas, about earlier in the office."

Chas grinned.

"Harry's a bit worked up about what you thought n'all but I told her that you'd keep schtum, right?"

Just then a huge outburst of laughter came from Fry's crowd and Chas looked over at them anxiously.

"Yeah, look I've got to go and find that whiskey bottle because the way they are carrying on someone is going to let something slip!" And with that he rushed off.

Dempsey chuckled to himself again and leant on the bar, finishing his beer. He scanned the room and his eyes settled on Harry who was stood chatting to Phillipa. Up until then he'd been so concerned about getting Dan out of the way and making sure that nobody else found out about what happened in the office that he hadn't had time to think about how unbelievably incredible the whole things was. Now, watching Harry from afar looking as sexy as ever, he could hardly believe how far things had gone between them. That is until he had a sudden vivid recollection of her lips on his chest, the soft sound of her moans in his ears, the feel of her silky skin under his hands - he was slowly heating up – her legs wrapped around him, her body pressed so intimately against his.

"Bloody hell, I need another drink!" he mumbled to himself, dragging his eyes away from Harry and catching the attention of the barman. This night was going to be one hell of a challenging one!


	15. Chapter 15

**Another quick chapter for tonight.**

Simon suddenly felt like a spare part stood there alone for the last half an hour. Pippa was engrossed in conversation with Harriet, Dan had left and the only other person who had no one to chat to apart from him was the drunk slumped over the table in the corner! He looked across at whom he assumed was more than just a work partner for Harriet. He wasn't entirely sure about that guy but he'd got nothing to lose by trying to talk to him. Besides he cared about Harriet and he wanted to check this guy out. With some reservations about the wisdom of approaching him, he moved to the bar next to Dempsey and ordered another drink.

Taking the beer, he looked sideways at Dempsey. "Women eh, they never stop chatting. Those two have been at it now for ages," he said, looking across at Harry and Pippa.

Dempsey didn't quite know what to make of this guy Simon, but he was Harry's friend and he didn't want to upset things anymore that night.

"Yeah. I guess you've lost you're drinkin' buddy tonight eh. You won't stand a chance gettin' a word in with them two."

"Tell me about it!" Simon said, swigging his beer. He hesitated before speaking again but this James guy seemed to be okay with him so far. "For what it's worth it's a good thing that Dan left."

Dempsey stilled and watched Simon disconcertingly.

Simon continued; he'd gone this far now after all. "I mean he's a mate of mine don't get me wrong but he wasn't good for Harriet. I could have wrung his neck when he left her."

Dempsey wasn't sure if he wanted to discuss this with Simon but curiosity got the better of him.

"She aint really mentioned him much to me," he said, stressing the lack of importance Dan was playing in Harry's life but at the same time hoping that Simon would expand more on the subject.

"Well they were together a long time ago now but he hurt her a lot. I tried to talk Pippa out of bringing him tonight but once she's got something in her head there's no hope of dissuading her."

Dempsey nodded.

Simon went on. "I came more than anything to see how she was after the shooting incident I heard about. She says she's okay but she'd say that even if she wasn't. You'd know more, has she really recovered from it?"

This guy wasn't so bad. Dempsey was a little unsure about whether he saw Harry as a friend or more, but at least he genuinely seemed concerned for her.

"Well, not completely but the boss here and I," Spikings was sat not far from them, getting accustomed to the less than prefect whiskey, "are makin' sure that she only works on minor cases. To tell the truth, I'd be happy to see her out of the force for good after this last scare. I'm workin' on that though."

Simon nodded and they both took a few more swigs of their beers. Dempsey was beginning to feel more relaxed with this guy and he spoke again after a while.

"So, this Dan guy, what'd he do, you know, to upset Harry so much?"

Simon rolled his eyes at the thought of it. "He did the usual Dan thing, made her fall for him, messed her around and then pissed off around the world without her."

"Hmm, well I gotta tell ya, he aint my favourite person right now," Dempsey replied.

"Join the club," Simon said.

Dempsey tentatively put forward the next question. "You ever date Harry?"

Simon looked surprised by the question. "I wish, but no. She was always too engrossed with Dan. And now I fear that someone may have beat me to it again," he laughed.

Dempsey frowned for a moment until Simon pointed his beer bottle at him. "You."

"Oh, yeah. I guess we are datin'."

Simon's expression abruptly changed. "Hey look, if you're going to mess her around like Dan you can forget it!"

Dempsey became suddenly angry. "What do you know about it!"

"I know that I'm seeing that look about her when she was with Dan so if you're not serious about her tell her, or I will."

"I'm plenty serious about her!" Dempsey said defensively.

Simon watched Dempsey for a while and then answered. "Good."

"I don't expect you're too happy about that though if you've got somethin' for her," Dempsey said, trying to figure the guy out.

Simon sighed. "Look, I gave up on anything happening between us years ago. I'd just like to see her happy."

Dempsey looked surprised and almost impressed. He nodded and finished his beer.

"Hey, you stayin' for another one?" he asked, lifting up his empty bottle.

Simon smiled. "Sure, looks like the girls are going to be a while."

Dempsey ordered two more beers, two glasses of wine for Harry and Pippa to be sent across to them and then he shouted across to Spikings.

"Hey boss, you wanna join us? Another whiskey?" he asked with a grin.

Spikings looked at his half empty glass and thought about the WI meeting at home. He shrugged, finished his drink and moved down the bar towards Simon and Dempsey.


	16. Chapter 16

When Spikings reached Dempsey and Simon he dismissed Dempsey's offer of a second drink from him that evening and ordered three whiskeys for himself, Simon and Dempsey. After all, if he was going to have to put up with the bad quality spirits they could bloody well join him too. Dempsey and Simon looked down and didn't know which drink to start with. Neither of them was very sure about the whiskey so they picked up their beers, simultaneously took a swig but then put them back on the bar and picked up the whiskey glasses when they saw the look on Spikings's face.

Simon leant towards Dempsey. "Is this stuff any good?"

Dempsey leant back. "In here, not a chance."

They took a look at Spikings again who was glaring at them, shrugged, clinked glasses with him and took a sip. Both tried not to pull a face as though they had just eaten a sour lemon and smiled at Spikings.

"Cheers boss," Dempsey said.

Spikings gave a curt nod.

***************************************

The barman placed two glasses of wine on the bar in front of Pippa and Harry and informed them that they had been sent over. They looked across at the men and Harry was surprised to see Simon talking to Dempsey.

"Oops, think we may have momentarily forgotten about Simon," Harry pointed out.

Pippa giggled. "He's a big boy now, he can look after himself. Besides this is time for us girls. I feel like we haven't had a girly chat for ages."

"We'll join them in a bit," Harry said, lifting her glass up to Dempsey when he looked up.

"Cheers," the girls mouthed.

Dempsey smiled and held up his glass back.

Harry mouthed to Simon, "You okay?"

Dempsey noticed and patted Simon's back. "Drinking buddies," he mouthed to Harry.

She laughed and gave him a huge smile.

Pippa whispered something to Harry and she nodded.

Spikings was saying something about the difference between Irish whiskey and scotch whisky but Dempsey wasn't really listening, he couldn't tear his eyes away from Harry. She looked up and caught him gazing at her. Smiling coyly, she lowered her eyes.

"Isn't she gorgeous," he said under his breath, more to himself than anyone else.

Simon laughed. "Boy, I don't know what I was worried about. You really do have it bad don't you!"

Simon watched Spikings on the other side of Dempsey as he grinned and nodded his agreement. They both laughed. Dempsey shook his head as he came out of his reverie and frowned, looking from one to the other.

"Quit that and drink you're damn whiskey," he said, feeling disconcerted by the attention on him.

They all took a sip and the only one not to cringe at the taste was Spikings. Either he was getting used to the taste or he was showing them that no drink could beat him.

*******************************************

"So," Pippa said, swaping back again to the subject that Harry was trying her best to avoid, "When are you going to tell him then?"

"Tell him what?" Harry said innocently.

"You know, tell him how you feel about him."

Harry grimaced. "I don't know. Not tonight though because I've had way too many of these," she said, glancing at her wine, "and it's bound to come out wrong, or I'll end up saying something silly."

"But tonight would be the best time! You are more relaxed. Tell him before you drink anymore though," Pippa suggested.

Harry looked panicked. "God no, I really can't Pip."

"Why not?" she frowned.

Harry looked uncomfortable. "I just can't, the words won't come out."

"That's because you haven't even admitted it to yourself yet, or me. Go on, admit it now," Pippa urged.

Harry coloured up. "Not here! He's just over there!"

Pippa grabbed Harry and pulled her around so that her back was to Dempsey. "Not that he can lip read anyway but now you can admit it. We are way too far away for him to hear."

Harry groaned. "What exactly would you like me to admit?"

"How you feel."

Harry sighed. "I...care about him a lot."

Pippa shook her head. "No, that's not good enough. You feel more than that, I can tell. You're in love with him aren't you? Just say it!"

Harry covered her face with her hands and Pippa growled, prising them away. "Just say it for god sake! It's only words. Then once you've said it it may not be so hard to tell him."

Harry doubted it. She took a deep breath and went to speak. "I..." she stopped, a look of pain and discomfort on her face.

*************************************************************

Simon spoke to Dempsey in a hushed voice. "You're boss doesn't say much does he? He's a bit serious. What do you ever talk about with him?"

Dempsey though for a moment. "Work is all...oh and fishin', he loves fishin'."

Simon tried not to laugh.

"So boss," Dempsey began, grinning and nudging Simon, "tell us about the trout."

"Oh I've left her at home," Spikings replied without thinking.

Dempsey and Simon burst out laughing. Spikings frowned and took another look at his drink. Perhaps he should slow down a bit.

"I know what we need," Dempsey announced. "We could all do with a good cigar."

Simon didn't look sure. "I don't really smoke James."

Dempsey dismissed his comment and asked the barman for three cigars from off the back shelf.

"It aint like proper smokin', it's more of a sensory experience. But you gotta have one with cognac. It's the only way to enjoy it," he said. "Right boss?"

"Anything has to be better than this whiskey," Spikings admitted.

Dempsey ordered three cognacs but Simon insisted on paying for them.

*****************************************

"Harry, if you don't say it soon, I swear to god I'm going to go and tell him myself!" Pippa said with frustration.

"What, you're in love with him then?" Harry laughed, but then sobered when she saw Pippa's glare. "Okay, okay. I...It's just that..." Pippa's glare became fiercer. "Okay. I lo...I think that I..." She gave up. "It's no good Pip, I can't do it!"

Pippa growled and moved away from the bar suddenly as if to walk off. Harry panicked and grabbed her arm, blurting out, "Okay, I'm in love with him! But I can't tell him Pip!"

Pippa grinned. "Okay, well you have finally passed the first session of psychotherapy, I can see I'm going to have to work on the rest!"

*******************************************

The three men unravelled their cigars and Dempsey picked up a lighter from off the bar, leaning over to Simon to light his cigar. Simon puffed furiously but not a lot was happening. He became red in the face so Dempsey tutted and took it off him, lighting it himself.

"There, now wait till we've lit ours and I'll tell you what you gotta do," he said, lighting his and passing the lighter to Spikings.

Simon held his cigar and put his elbow on the bar, testing out his best distinguished gentleman look and feeling quite impressed with himself.

With all three cigars lit, Dempsey picked up his cognac and indicated for Simon and Spikings to do the same.

"Right. First you take a sip of this. Now you gotta coat your mouth with it, enjoy the taste and then swallow it."

They all took a sip. Dempsey watched Simon and frowned. "Hey, it aint mouthwash! You gotta work on your technique!"

"Can we get on to the cigar bit now?" Simon complained.

"Yeah, yeah, all right. Now take in some of the cigar," Simon had already done so but was coughing and choking, "Not like that!" Dempsey exclaimed. "You aint supposed to take it right in."

Simon looked a little green. "Now you tell me!"

Dempsey chuckled. Spikings grinned.

"You gotta take in a bit but don't fully inhale. Then roll it round your mouth and savour the taste." He demonstrated and even Spikings looked intrigued. Spikings and Simon copied him, looking much like a couple of goldfish with the faces they were making.

"Great, there you go," Dempsey said, looking from one to the other. "Now you gotta practise your favourite John Wayne quotes," he grinned.

Spikings coughed and spat out a stream of smoke. "I'm not speaking that Yankie rubbish!"

Dempsey ignored him and drawled out in his best John Wayne accent, "Talk low, talk slow and don't say too much."

Simon looked impressed but Spikings huffed and turned his attention back to his cigar. Dempsey tried it again.

"If everything isn't black and white, I say, 'Why the hell not?'" He elbowed Simon. "Bet you aint got a John Wayne quote."

Simon cleared his throat and began in a deep voice. "Get off your horse and drink your milk." He looked at Dempsey smugly.

"Hey, that's not bad...for a Brit!"

Spikings tutted. "If you're going to quote at least quote someone decent!" He began, "We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender!"

Simon and Dempsey nodded at him but went on to voice their own quotes. The three of them sat there in their own little worlds, holding their cigars and quoting in deep, drawling voices.

Suddenly they heard a loud coughing sound behind them and they all swung around guiltily to face Makepeace with her hands on her hips.

"What on earth are you three doing?" she laughed.

Dempsey smiled. "Hiya princess. Got them all quotin' John Wayne. Well apart from the boss of course, don't know what he's quotin'." he chuckled.

She noticed their cigars and burst out laughing, looking from one to the other to the next. They beamed back at her with cheshire cat grins.


	17. Chapter 17

Dempsey put down his cigar, stood up and grabbed Harry by the hand. "Excuse me but I have to talk to my partner urgently. It's about the case," he said, glancing at Spikings. Spikings just grinned, but then he'd had a permanent grin on his face after the last whiskey, and the cognac he'd followed it with.

Dempsey pulled Harry further down the bar away from the crowds, took a seat on a bar stool and pulled her close to him.

"We've finished the case Dempsey, haven't we?" Harry pointed out.

"Hmm," he put his arm around her waist and began nuzzling her neck. "But I was talkin' about another case and it's real bad."

Makepeace's eyes widened and she faked a shocked look. "Oh my goodness, what is it?"

"Well, someone has stolen my sanity, broken into my head, taken over my thoughts and they're holding them for ransom in Spikings's office as we speak!"

"That is bad," she grinned, "what are we going to do?"

He grinned back. "I can think of something." His hand began to wander down her back, edging ever lower. She caught it just in time and looked around nervously to see who was watching.

Dempsey replaced his hand on her waist. "Hell, I can't decide if it was a good or bad thing that Chas interrupted us," he whispered.

She turned her head to whisper back in his ear. "It was probably a good thing. I'm going to find it hard going in there now as it is."

He laughed. "Makepeace, you have such a way with words. Me too, in fact I couldn't have put it better myself."

Makepeace played back in her head what she'd just said and her mouth fell open in shock when she realised his insinuation.

"Dempsey," she exclaimed, slapping him on the arm. "Behave yourself, especially here with everyone around!"

"Hey, you brought it up! Oops, there I go again," he laughed.

She blushed and pushed away from him. "Think we ought to go back. They'll be wondering what we're doing."

"Damn!" he watched her go and eventually reluctantly followed her back into the group.

Taking a seat next to Simon again he whispered, "I just don't get women. One minute they're givin' you the green light and the next everythin' comes to a halt!"

He looked at Dempsey sympathetically. "Yes well it's Harry you're talking about here too." He sucked in his breath and shook his head. "Twice as much of a challenge."

"Yeah but she knows how I feel about her now so I don't see the problem," Dempsey said with anguish.

"Are you sure she knows?" Simon asked.

Dempsey frowned. "She must do."

Simon scrunched up his face as if in pain. "Oooh, never assume a woman knows how you feel. Women are weird creatures. They'll convince themselves of anything and if you haven't spelt it out to her she'll be thinking right this minute that you're only after one thing."

"What?!" Dempsey looked panicked. "That's not how it is! Well, of course I _am_ after that thing," he grinned, "but I aint ever felt like this about no one before."

"Yes well _you_ know that, and now I know that, but does _she_ know that?"

Dempsey thought about it. "Why wouldn't she? After all we've been through together and...hell, maybe she doesn't," he backtracked.

"Precisely, so tell her," Simon said.

Dempsey looked uncomfortable. "What exactly am I gonna tell her?"

Simon grinned. "You know, sorry mate but you're going to have to use the 'L' word."

The colour drained from Dempsey's face. "You're kiddin'. Can't I just put it some other way? You know, tell her I care in a different way."

Simon shook his head. "What did I say? You have to spell it out to them. To women 'care' isn't the same as hearing the 'L' word."

"Ahh, but what if I'm wrong 'bout this whole thing and she doesn't feel the same, she'll laugh in my face!"

"Give her some credit! Even if she didn't feel the same she wouldn't do that."

"Sure, but how could we work together afterwards? Her knowin' that. And besides, I don't think I can say it. It would just sound real dumb as soon as it came outta my mouth."

"Well think about it. And while you're thinking about it consider this, if you tell her, my bet is that she'll be giving you a permanent green light," Simon grinned, patting him on the back.

Dempsey's face lit up as Simon stood and went to find Pippa.

"Permanent green light eh," he said to himself, grabbing Harry's hand again and dragging her to one side.

"What now?" she asked.

He didn't like the sound of that, she seemed a bit annoyed with him. Not a good start but he'd have a go anyway.

"Harry, I was just thinkin'," he began, looking into her eyes and getting a sudden attack of the nerves.

"What?" she asked.

"Err, well," he wracked his brains for the right thing to say without coming on too strong. "I've never had a partner like you." Although he had meant it, it sounded like a joke, probably because he never usually said such things. He cringed inwardly.

She looked at him wryly. "Yes I know. You've never had so much fun in the office with any other partner."

"No, no, that aint what I meant." He ran a hand through his hair and tried to begin again but was interrupted by a frenzied looking Chas who asked if they had seen Fry and rushed off again when they informed him that they hadn't. Harry watched Chas go and wondered what was going on over there.

"What I mean is that we've been through a lot together, haven't we?"

She turned back to him and gave him a quizzical look. "Mmm?" She wasn't on his wavelength at all. She seemed a little distracted.

He changed tact, steering clear of work related subjects. "Harry, I think that you're..."

_Beautiful_

"What?" she asked.

_Very attractive_

"Err... oh never mind," he gave up.

"Can we go back now?" she said, a little exasperated.

"Wait," he was determined to say something right. "I don't want to go back to New York, you know why?"

Harry had no idea what was going through his head. He was acting really oddly. Perhaps he had drunk too much whiskey.

"Well, I would say it's because Coltrane has put a contract out on you."

He sighed and looked crestfallen. "Not exactly... I need another drink," he said, getting up suddenly and moving to the bar.

Chas rushed past in the opposite direction as Harry moved back to the group. She frowned. Everyone was acting very strangely!

Dempsey bought another whiskey and a glass of wine for Harry. He was going to work things out that night between them if it was the last thing he ever did!

**By the way, the case isn't over, even though they think it is.**


	18. Chapter 18

Makepeace grabbed one of the officers as he walked past. "What's wrong with Chas? He's acting all funny!"

The officer swayed slightly and looked at her blankly before her arm was pulled again and she swung around to face Pippa.

"What was that all about?" she frowned.

"What?" Makepeace said in confusion.

"James keeps pulling you aside to talk to you and you keep running back here!" she exclaimed.

"No I don't," she replied defensively. "He wanted to get another drink anyway."

"Well you could at least pay attention to him when he's talking to you. He looked positively miserable when you kept turning away from him and looking over here."

"What?" She turned to glance at Dempsey at the bar. "Well it's just that there's something wrong with Chas. He's gone weird," she giggled.

"Never mind about Chas! Concentrate on James will you? And you might like to slow down on the wine too!"

Harry looked sheepish. "Do you think I was a bit offish?"

"Just a bit! Now be nice to him Harriet. Here, he's coming back," she said, moving away from Harry.

Harry turned and smiled at Dempsey as he approached, handing her another glass of wine. She still had half a glass of wine in her hand so she drained it, put the glass down on a table and accepted the glass Dempsey was offering her.

"Thanks sweetie."

_Oh boy! Perhaps I shouldn't have rushed that last glass!_

"Harry," Dempsey began. She smiled at him, making an effort to seem approachable whilst waiting for a sudden dizzy spell to pass.

"Yes James."

"Remember that time when I was gonna shoot Coltrane and you stopped me? Well, you said that you cared," On hearing this she wondered if he had actually overheard her conversation with Pippa and she took a gulp of wine from her fresh glass. "and well, I…" He stopped and looked at her with concern when she swayed alarmingly towards him. "You okay?"

She giggled. "Yep, this wine is good stuff!"

He looked at the glass in her hand and chuckled, taking it off her and placing it on the table before she spilt any more of it.

"Harry, I was sayin'…"

She leant against him and looked up into his face dreamily. He looked down at her and grinned. She ran her hands over his chest and began to fiddle with the buttons.

"What were you saying James?" she purred.

"Err," he watched her hands begin exploring. "Well, I was sayin'…"

One of her fingers slid between two buttons and began stroking the skin underneath. "Hmm?"

"Err…err, well." He stopped and growled at her, grabbing her by the arm for the third time that night, but this time he dragged her right the way across the pub to the toilets at the back.

As soon as they were out of sight of anyone his lips were on hers, his hands in her hair, over her shoulders, down her back. She held his head to her and moaned as she kissed him back. Then his hands were on her behind, pulling her into him and she dropped her head onto his chest, undoing buttons and kissing the exposed skin as she went.

"Oh lord!" Dempsey said in anguish. "Let's go home."

She pulled back suddenly in alarm. "No, no lieutenant, if we do that they'll know!"

"Know what?" he frowned.

She grinned, slowly doing up his buttons again. "You know, all about the naughty things we've been doing."

He grinned back. "I can get way naughtier."

"I'm sure you can lieutenant, but not in here," she said, taking him by the hand and dragging him back into the pub.

"That's the whole point Harry. That's why we should go home now!" he said in desperation. She wasn't listening though and minutes later they were back amongst the crowds.

Simon spotted Dempsey and pulled him to one side. "So? Did you tell her?"

"No," he sulked. "Things aren't goin' to plan."

Simon looked sympathetic. "Well don't give in, here have another one of these, it'll give you some Dutch courage," Simon said, passing Dempsey another whiskey.

Dempsey felt a little light-headed as it was but he took the glass and drank the contents all the same. Afterwards he looked down at the glass with surprise.

"Hmm, tastes different. This is a good one!" he smiled.

Chas passed them then and they watched as he continued down the bar, checking all the glasses and the bottles on the shelves behind.

Makepeace wobbled up to Dempsey, picked up his hand from off the bar and placed his arm around her waist.

"No more chatting without me you two," she said, pointing a finger at them. "You two have been chatting all night long!"

"Us chatting!" they both said in unison.

"Yes," she said, lacing her fingers through Dempsey's. "And he's _my _boyfriend, so stop monopolising him!" she said to Simon.

Simon laughed but Dempsey was still stunned by the fact that she had used the word 'boyfriend'.

Chas made his way back down the bar again and stopped in front of Harry and Dempsey, momentarily glancing at their entwined fingers before speaking in a fluster.

"Look, Spikings is getting bored, you have to entertain him and keep him here so that I can find his whiskey before he goes. Maybe he won't notice that some of it has gone if I hand it back tonight. He seems to have had a few."

Dempsey and Makepeace giggled and Chas looked annoyed. "Hey, I help you two out and you help me out in return. Understand?"

Harry looked at a loss but Dempsey nodded furiously.

"Right, so entertain him!" Chas said, rushing off again.

Dempsey looked at Simon. "Any idea how I can entertain him?"

Simon shrugged.

"Tap dance, juggling, harmonica?"

They all chuckled.

Dempsey glanced behind the bar for inspiration and found some. "Got it!" He asked for the barman to pass him something and held it up in triumph. "Poker!" Turning to Spikings who was sitting at the end of the bar he shouted, "Hey boss, you want to challenge me to a game of poker? I'm a mean player."

Spikings shook his head and Dempsey stood up suddenly, whispering to Harry. "You go and do your best to persuade him. I'll grab us a table."

Harry moved very slowly and carefully towards Spikings.

_Mustn't let him know I'm tipsy._

She focused her eyes on her feet and used the bar as a support, walking one hand over the other across it.

Spikings watched her with great amusement. She eventually reached him and stood for a few moments staring at her feet, waiting for the spinning to stop, before looking up at him. He was grinning at her.

"Hello sir."

"Harry."

"Sir, we cordially invite you to come and play a game of poker with us. Well Dempsey does anyway," she smiled.

He shook his head in disbelief at her and stood up, offering her his arm. She grinned and linked arms with him, thanking god that she had some support to go back and glad that he hadn't twigged that she may have had one too many glasses of wine.


	19. Chapter 19

Spikings led Harry over to the table that Dempsey had claimed for their poker game. Most of the other officers were now also showing an interest in the poker challenge and they had gathered around the table. Dempsey was in the middle of transferring the drinks from the bar to the table when Spikings reached him and handed Harry's arm over to him.

"I feel like I'm giving her away. Here, she's your responsibility now," he grinned.

Dempsey looked proud of the fact and took her arm possessively.

"Hey, wait a minute, I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself thank you very much!" Harry said, keeping her arm in Dempsey's nonetheless. "_And _you'd better watch out because I'm the best female cop…in the world, isn't that right Sir?" she said to Spikings.

"Of course," he grinned.

She turned to Dempsey. "See, Spikings said so." Spikings was quite impressed at how well she had tackled all those s's.

Simon chuckled by her side and she glared at him. "And you'd better be careful or my partner here will be onto you and he's really mean with his gun!" she warned, holding onto his arm more tightly.

At that point Fry suddenly appeared from nowhere and stood up on a chair to see them through the crowd.

"I'll challenge Dempsey to a duel for Harry!" he shouted out. All the other officers laughed but Fry looked pleased with all the attention until Chas spotted him from the other side of the bar.

"Fry!" he yelled. "I want a word with you!"

"Oops," Fry said, ducking off the chair and running for cover with a whiskey bottle sticking out from under his denim jacket.

"C'mon partner, you gotta help me win this poker game," Dempsey said, moving over to the bench sofa at the other side of the table and taking a seat opposite Spikings. Harry amazed herself and everyone else by walking around the table unaided and Dempsey held out his hand to her, helping her pick her way across the feet of the officers who had swiftly taken up seats around the table. When she eventually reached him he tapped his lap with his other hand and she looked at it with surprise.

"Oh, okay," she said as he pulled her onto his lap.

He looked like the cat who'd got the cream and put his arm around her waist, announcing, "Harry's my lady luck, aren't you partner?"

"Definately," she said, whispering something into his ear. All the other officers' mouths dropped open as they watched them. Dempsey chuckled and she whispered to him again. He chuckled again, he was enjoying this. Then he noticed everyone's eyes on them.

"Just discussing strategy," he grinned.

Harry looked up. "Oh yes, strategy," she said nodding.

Dempsey spotted Simon and Pippa then from behind the crowd and he gestured them over.

"Make way, make way," he said, pushing the other officers aside. Simon sat down and held out his arms for Pippa. She shrugged and sat on his lap, taking her cue from Harry.

"Right boss, what's the ante?" Dempsey asked.

Spikings reached into his pocket and pulled out a couple of pound notes. "Two pounds?"

Dempsey nodded. "Sounds fair to me. I'll throw in the keys to my Lamborghini later eh," he winked at Harry. She giggled.

The cards were dealt and Dempsey and Spikings picked up their hands.

"Oh before we start, pass Harry's drink over from the bar will you?" Dempsey said to one of the officers opposite him. All the officers grimaced and the officer he'd spoken to looked at him as if he was making a big mistake but Dempsey glared at him so he got up and reached for the wine, placing it in front of Harry. She picked it up and took a sip. Everyone watched but she shooed their attention away with her hand and looked at Dempsey's cards.

"What does that mean then?" she asked him.

He whispered something into her ear.

"Oh," she replied, and then looked at the cards again. "Ooooooh," she said, her face lighting up.

"Shhh." Dempsey put a finger to his lips.

"Ooops, sorry," she said.

The game was played and there was a lot of glaring between Dempsey and Spikings, with both scrutinising each other's eyes to see if they could guess the other's hand. Dempsey raised the bet and, considering Harry's drunken comments at the start of the game, Spikings folded and Dempsey won the pot. Harry jumped up and down on his lap cheering loudly. Then Spikings revealed that he had a flush and picked up Dempsey's cards from off the table, turning them over to look at them.

"Two pair!" he exclaimed in disbelief, throwing them back on the table. Dempsey and Harry did a high five and then looked a little sheepishly at Spikings.

"You two," he pointed at them angrily and then clenched a fist, growling. "Bloody bluffers!"

Harry picked up her wine glass, took another sip but frowned at it, handing it back to the officer. "Put that back on the bar for me will you and pass me a water," she hiccupped. "I think I need it!"

After being well and truly caught out by Harry and Dempsey's trickery Spikings insisted on playing again so that he had a chance of winning his money back. The bar owner approached them then and announced that the pub was closing but one look at Spikings's face and the owner agreed to let them stay on a little longer. Spikings won the next game to Dempsey's relief, he'd had enough of playing poker and had another plan in his head. Standing up he took Harry's hand and went back to the bar, beckoning the barman over and whispering for him to do something. The barman looked uncertain and brought the owner over to Dempsey. Eventually after much persuading Dempsey achieved what he had wanted.

"How about a dance before we go Harry?" he asked with a hopeful expression.

"But no one else is dancing," she fretted.

"They are all busy over there, it'll just be you and me alone. Come on, what d'a say?"

She couldn't possibly refuse considering the look on his face so she took his hand and he led her over to an empty space at the other end of the pub as the music began. Dempsey had been quite wrong about nobody noticing however and when he saw that everyone's eyes were on them he turned Harry so that her back was to them and blocked them out of his mind. He wanted to savour this moment with Harry.

Wrapping his arms around her he pulled her gently to him and she placed her hands on his shoulders, sliding them up his neck and into his hair. He closed his eyes and placed his head next to hers as they swayed to the music and he began to hum.

"You like Springsteen Harry?" he asked.

"Err, I'm not sure I know this one."

When the music started however she did recognise the song and he began to sing quietly into her ear.

**I'm driving in my car**

**I turn on the radio**

**I'm pulling you close**

**You just say no**

**You say you don't like it**

**But girl I know you're a liar**

**'cause when we kiss, oooh, fire!**

She smiled and her heart did a huge leap in her chest. She moved her head and looked up at him, her eyes misty and full of emotion. She had some words in her head to tell him and her eyes told him everything but the words got caught in her throat and she had to swallow to stop tears from forming.

Dempsey's whole being was reaching out to Harry. He'd never expected in his life to meet anyone he felt so much for, anyone half as wonderful as the woman in his arms. He wished that he could put into words and tell her how much he felt at that moment but he had no idea how to do so.

He began to sing again to the song.

**When we kiss, oooh, fire!**

"Kiss me Harry," he asked.

She looked unsure and went to turn her head to see if anyone was watching but he caught her by the chin and turned her head back.

"Don't look at them, look at me and kiss me Harry," he asked again, stroking her cheek and cupping it with his hand. He didn't attempt to pull her head towards him but before long his other hand had cupped the other side of her face. Her heart was pounding and her face glowing red as his eyes drew her in, making it impossible for her to resist and her lips fell onto his. The kiss was tender but also passionate and heated at the same time. Dempsey bent his head to one side and deepened the kiss just before they heard cheers and shouts from behind them. Then someone started singing loudly and the whole room was filled with the loud sound of the officers voices as they stood on the chairs and sang at the top of their voices.

**Romeo and Juliet**

**Samson and Delilah**

**Baby you can bet**

**Their love they didn't deny**

**Your words say split**

**But your words they lie**

**'cause when they kiss, oooooooooh, _Fire!_**

Harry laughed and buried her head into Dempsey's chest in embarrassment as they began to chant.

**Harry and Demspey, oooooh, fire! They're burning up with fire!!! Fire!!!! Fire!!!!!**


	20. Chapter 20

Makepeace was laughing, her face buried against Dempsey as the chanting and singing continued. Dempsey laughed also and put his arm around her shoulders, holding her head to him and shaking his head at the crowd behind her. He hadn't got a prayer at getting them to stop though, and he knew it. He ducked his head and asked,

"You okay there partner?"

She groaned and shook her head on his chest, feeling oddly excited about everybody knowing but also acutely shy about facing them all.

The song finally finished and Dempsey and Harry moved back to the table with everybody cheering and whistling all the way and Makepeace trying to hide her face behind Dempsey.

Suddenly Spikings's booming voice cut through all the commotion.

"Okay, okay, that's enough. Get down off there," he shouted to the officers who were stood on the chairs. "Now I have something to say before I leave tonight."

The whole room went silent and the officers slowly climbed down off the chairs and took their seats again, wondering what Spikings had to say. Before he spoke he noticed Fry lying on the floor in a drunken stupor next to the bar and Chas sat nearby, trying desperately to fill Spikings's empty whiskey bottle with some whiskey from a bottle he had persuaded the barman to sell him.

"Chas," he shouted out, making Chas almost jump out of his skin. "It might be an entirely better idea to just replace my bottle at some point tomorrow."

"Right you are sir," Chas replied as relief flooded through him.

"And somebody do something about him will you?" Spikings said, pointing to Fry. Some officers jumped up and dragged Fry off the floor, draping him over a chair before Spikings began speaking again.

"Firstly I'd like to say that you are all…" he gave everybody one of his fiercest looks and they all cowered inside. Then his face suddenly changed as a broad grin spread across it, "…the best team a man could possibly hope to lead. Now don't get me wrong you could all do with a kick up the rear on occasion but when it comes to the crunch and you're needed, you never let me down. Credit where credit's due." He smiled at them and everybody looked extremely pleased with themselves. "But if there's one thing I hope that I have driven home to everyone in the team during the time I have had the challenging but rewarding job of leading it, it's that none of you can afford to become lazy. The moment you do there's another grandfather who's afraid every night to go to bed for fear that someone is going to break into his home." He gave Dempsey and Harry a purposeful look, smiled and continued. "Another woman who is being stalked by some crazed lunatic. Another child who has been taken away from their parents. Another gang of criminals who are terrorising the local neighbourhood. Need I say more? Now it may have escaped your notice but I'm getting a bit long in the tooth to continue doing this job forever and you may find some time in the near future somebody else taking over from me. I would hope that you'd all show them the same respect that you have shown me and continue to do the job that you are all so badly needed for." With that he held up his whiskey glass, "Here's to SI10."

"SI10," everybody said in unison, taking a sip of their drinks and swallowing the lumps in their throats. Spikings emptied his glass, placed it on the table and walked towards the door. Suddenly a loud sound cut through the silence and everyone turned to see Dempsey stood up, slowly applauding. Makepeace stood up next to him and began clapping also and gradually one by one, each of the officers stood in silence and all that could be heard was the sound of loud applauding as Spikings walked past them. He reached the door, opened it and turned to take another look at his team. He nodded his head a few times as if satisfied with something and then he smiled a soft smile which told them how proud he felt. Then he left.


	21. Chapter 21

**This is a quick in between chapter. I'll post the next one late this afternoon.**

All the officers were making their way out of the bar, leaving Dempsey and Harry still sitting at the table. On his way out Chas left the remains of his failed attempt to transfer the whiskey in front of them and trudged moodily towards the exit. Simon and Pippa strolled up to them arm in arm.

"Bye, bye sweetie," Pippa said to Harry, holding her arms out for a hug. Harry stood up and hugged Pippa. "Don't forget, tell him soon," she whispered into her ear before giving her a kiss on the cheek. "And let's not make it so long next time before we do this again," she added out loud, turning to hug and kiss Dempsey.

Simon took Harry's hand and pulled her to him, hugging her closely and whispering, "You know I'll always love you. Be happy eh."

She kissed him on the cheek. "I love you too Simon." He wished that that was true, in the way he wanted anyway.

Lastly Simon turned to Dempsey and held out his hand. "Good to meet you mate."

Dempsey shook his hand. "Yeah, keep practisin' your John Wayne." Simon laughed. "And next time you're in this part of town give us a call eh," Dempsey smiled.

"I'll do that." Simon turned to leave but stopped and added to Dempsey before he left, "Look after her for me will you?"

Dempsey sat down and put his arm around Harry. "You know I will."

Then they left.

Harry sighed loudly and leant her elbow on the table top. Dempsey looked down at her.

"What's wrong partner?" he asked.

"Everything is changing. Don't like change," she sulked.

"Sometimes change is good," he pointed out.

"When?"

He thought about it. "Err, a change of scenery, that's good."

She didn't look impressed.

"Okay, I can do better than that," he said, trying to rethink through the haze of alcohol. "Ah, I know, change from twenty bucks when you go to the store."

She shook her head at him. "That's not the same thing."

He sighed and picked up one of the half bottles of whiskey, pouring them another glass. "Here, drink this and cheer up."

She took a gulp and cringed. "He's going to leave SI10 isn't he?"

"Well, it's gonna happen one day," Dempsey said.

She pouted. "Well I don't want it to happen today!"

Dempsey looked confused. "Can't happen today."

"Or tomorrow," she added.

"I've got it!" he suddenly exclaimed.

"Got what?" she asked.

"A good change. You kissing me in front of all the guys, that's a change!" he grinned.

She giggled. "That certainly is a change!" Then she looked worried all of a sudden. She put her finger to her mouth. "Oh, but perhaps we shouldn't have done that."

"Why?" he asked.

"Going to regret it in the morning." She bit her lip.

"Nah you won't," he said, dismissing the idea with a hand gesture.

She looked thoughtful, biting her nail. "Yes I will, but," she grabbed his arm suddenly in a panic and he jumped, "You mustn't remind me of it in the morning."

"No?"

She shook her head, a very serious expression on her face. "No, don't tell me a thing about it and I'll be just fine. Nothing happened, ok?"

"Oh, yes, mum's the word," he assured her.

"Shhh," she said.

"Shhh," he said.

"Soooo," he said, looking at her sideways, "What do we do now then?"

"Well you know lieutenant," she replied, putting both hands on his arm, "I think it's about time to go home."

They both looked up and realised that they were the only people left.

"Yep, definitely time to go home," he agreed. "But....whose home do we go to?"

"Me in my home, you in yours," she said instinctively.

He frowned. "Nah, don't like the sound of that."

"What then?" she asked.

"What about you in my home, me in mine?"

She tried to figure that one out but looked uncertain. "No, don't like that either. How about you in your home, me in yours?"

He looked impressed. "Okay, you win," he said, jumping up suddenly, grabbing the bottles in one hand and her arm in the other.


	22. Chapter 22

They caught a taxi and throughout most of the journey Harry took small swigs out of the whiskey bottle she'd taken out of Dempsey's hand. She was on a roll and determinedly unstoppable. Dempsey joined her but his bottle was the one which Chas had unsuccessfully managed to fill and he soon ran out of whiskey. He was actually quite relieved; he was finding it near on impossible to keep up with her.

Once in his flat Harry fell down on his sofa and lay across it, staring up at the ceiling. Dempsey looked at her and wondered what was going to happen that night. He was torn. On the one hand he very much liked the idea of picking up where they left off in Spikings's office but on the other he reluctantly realised that it wasn't the best time and he probably wasn't going to stand a chance of anything happening between them in the state she was in that night anyway. How wrong could he have been?

Moving her legs to one side, he took a seat on the sofa with her. She turned herself around and put her head on his lap, looking up at him.

"Are you going to have your wicked way with me tonight then Dempsey?" she asked, reaching up and fiddling with his top button.

He looked shocked and wasn't sure how to answer. "Err, you wanna get frisky?" he asked with surprise.

"Yeah," she said, jumping up and kneeling on the sofa next to him, "Let's get frisky." She went for his shirt buttons but he grabbed her hands.

"Wait! Somethin' aint right."

She frowned. "What?"

"You never want to get frisky."

She grinned. "I got frisky tonight in the office, remember?"

He grinned back. "Oh yeah, I remember." She reached for his shirt again but he blocked her. "But that was different."

"Why?" she asked.

"'Cause we were angry and I caught you off guard."

"So catch me off guard again," she suggested. He just stared at her, not knowing what to do for the best. "Or I could catch you off guard," she said, swinging her leg over his lap suddenly and sitting astride him.

"Woa!!!" he exclaimed, moving back from her with a shocked expression. "Stay back tiger or I'll not be responsible for my actions!"

"Tell you what, I'll be responsible for them then," she said, unbuttoning his shirt.

"Oooh, you minx, but no, we can't," he insisted, catching her hands after the forth button.

"Ahh, why not?"

He was actually finding it difficult to come up with a reason himself why he couldn't take to bed the woman that he'd wanted so desperately in his bed for what seemed like an eternity. He tired to clear his head and not think about the feel of her legs around him.

"Because you're very drunk and I'm pretty drunk and I've been here before remember? And I've also experienced your reaction the morning after."

She dismissed his comment. "Don't think about that, let's just do it."

"Are you crazy? Why do you want to just do it?"

She jumped up and down on his lap impatiently. "Because I'm in the mood now so now would be a good time."

"Will you quit doin' that, you're turnin' me on," he said, trying to stop her from bouncing.

"Good." She jumped up and down more.

He grabbed her firmly by the arms. "Harry, listen to me. Look at me...straight in the eyes."

She looked at him sheepishly.

"Why are you really doing this?" he asked seriously.

She stopped and her eyes darted away from his.

"Harry, come on, why?"

She spoke to him with her eyes diverted. "Because it's easier now," she admitted.

"Easier?"

"Yes," she said, fiddling with his shirt sleeve.

"Why?" he asked.

"I don't know, because I'm more relaxed."

He looked at her down turned face for a few long moments. "What, so you gotta have drunk a bucket full of alcohol to sleep with me?"

She frowned. "No, it's not that."

"Well what then?"

She sighed. "You make me nervous sometimes," she admitted.

"Why?" he asked.

"I don't know. I get nervous when I think about doing the 's' thing with you," she said blushing.

He laughed. "Why do you get nervous Harry?"

"You know why. Stop looking at me like that," she said, covering her face with her hands.

He watched her thoughtfully. "You know your problem? You've spent so long tryin' to fight me off that you don't know how to turn that around."

She slowly removed her hands. "Maybe. I just get all," she tried to think of the word, "jittery when it gets to that kind of situation with you and I want to run. I'm afraid that we'll never do it," she said.

"Hey, jittery aint a bad thing you know. In fact it's really sexy. I love the way I can make you all jittery," he grinned. "Besides, it's like I've told you before, this thing between us can only come to one conclusion. It's just a matter of time."

"Well okay, let's cut out the matter of time and do it now," she suggested.

He groaned, not able to believe that he was actually trying to put her off. "Harry, I've wanted this for as long as I can remember but if we do it now I'd be letting you down. I'd be letting us both down. 'Cause this is way more than just a roll in the hay."

"It is?" she asked.

He frowned. "Yes, it is. For me it is!"

"And for me. And it is for you?" she asked again.

"Of course it is. What, you think I'd be sittin' here arguin' about takin' you to bed if it wasn't?"

Her face lit up. "So okay we both feel the same. Now can we do it?"

He laughed. "NO!"

She grinned. "Oh go on, please."

"No, now it's time for bed."

"Great."

He looked at her suspiciously. "No Harry, I mean time to sleep." What the hell was he saying! But no, he had to stick to his guns on this.

"Okay," she said, jumping off his lap. "I'll go and warm the bed up."

"Hmm, maybe I should sleep on here," he said on second thoughts.

"Noooo, it'd be way too uncomfortable on there," she said, grabbing him by the arm and dragging him up. "Come on Dempsey, come sleep in bed with me."

Once he was standing, before he knew it she had his remaining buttons undone and was peeling off his shirt.

"God damn it Harry, behave yourself!"

"Mmm," she said, running her hands over his chest. He closed his eyes and clenched his hands in an attempt at resistance.

"Come on, let's go to bed," she said, and he was finally able to breathe when she moved away from him.

She stopped at the lounge door and threw him a seductive look over her shoulder. "I'm going to get in your bed now Dempsey," she called, "don't be long."

What the hell was he going to do now? He couldn't sleep on the sofa, she was right it was way too uncomfortable he convinced himself. Well it wasn't as if he hadn't handled a few overly enthusiastic women before. Hmm, but not an overly enthusiastic Harry. He didn't stand a chance! Okay, but she'd had a huge amount to drink so she'd probably be asleep soon. He'd wait until she was asleep and then he'd get into his bed.

"Dempsey," she called from the other room. "I'm taking my clothes off!"

He ran a hand through his hair in utter frustration.

"Now I'm completely naked!" she called again. He groaned and tugged at his hair, shutting his eyes tightly and trying desperately to block that image out of his head.

"Now I'm getting into your bed!" she called once more.

He began to pace the lounge, repeating to himself, "I aint doin' it! I aint doin' it!"

After a while she went quiet and he tiptoed into his bedroom, seeking her through the darkness. She was lying on her back, strangely still but with her eyes still open. He quickly stripped off his trousers and slid into the bed beside her. He turned to look at her and realised that her eyes were glistening with unshed tears that she was trying to keep in check. He reached for her but she shied away.

"Harry, what's wrong?" he asked.

"I couldn't even do it," she said, "I'm still half dressed."

He smiled and lifted the bed clothes. "You got down to your underwear, that's pretty impressive."

She pulled the bedclothes down. "What's wrong with me?" she asked. "You're right, I am cold. Like an iceberg."

He laughed and pulled her over to him, wrapping his arms around her. "Harry, you are the warmest, hottest, most sizzling woman I have ever met in my entire life! And between us...woa! It's an inferno! Even those jerks at SI10 can see that."

"I thought that you didn't want me after all," she said quietly.

He laughed loudly. "God, if only you knew! You've been very lucky tonight partner that I didn't run in here after you and make sure that you did take everythin' off! You just wait, the very moment that we are both sober I'm gonna be doin' everythin' I can to get the rest of these clothes off!" he laughed. "And no doubt you'll be doin' your best to keep them on. But don't be anxious 'bout us princess, cause you and me, we're magic together."

She smiled.

"And you may be jittery the first time, I sure as hell know that I will be, but that's only because there's so much between us. All that magic makes people jittery." He smiled and kissed her cheek, watching her fall asleep. Moments later he whispered, "I love you Harry."


	23. Chapter 23

Dempsey's eyes flew open and his first instinct was to go for his gun, he could hear breathing in his ear. He went to move his hand but stopped himself just in time as he realised who the breathing was coming from and the events of the night before came flooding back to him. Not only that but the hand that he thought was lying on a pillow was in fact doing no such thing. It was lying on more of a fleshy pillow, Harry's behind! He chuckled to himself. Even in his drunken sleep his instincts weren't off! He was itching to move his hand and feel more of the soft fleshy curves but he was afraid of waking her up and much to his regret he hadn't even really appreciated the fact that she had been lying against him in only her underwear before he had fallen asleep. The problem now was how to lift the bedclothes to make the most of the opportunity and take a peek when either he'd have to move his hand from her behind or roll over to free his second hand? The decision was a tough one so he dipped his head and tried to nose the covers up rather than having to relinquish his hand or risk waking her by turning over.

"What are you doing?"

Dempsey jumped guiltily and his head shot up. "Mornin' Harry," he grinned.

She lifted her head slightly and her eyes moved slowly down the sheet to where his hand was lying underneath it before returning to his face.

"Would you mind removing your hand Dempsey?"

"Well, actually it's quite happy where it is," he grinned.

"Hmm, I bet it is," she said, rolling away onto her side and tucking the sheet around her.

"Feelin' jittery Harry?" he asked, watching her.

She closed her eyes, trying to block out the pain in her head not to mention the embarrassment of the night before.

"You remember much of last night?" he asked, recalling her lack of memory the last time he had seen her that drunk.

She groaned. "Unfortunately yes. It's all coming back to me in startling clarity!"

He laughed. "So you don't need me to recap for you then?"

"No thank you Dempsey but you could get me a glass of water. A large one," she stressed.

He stared at her, contemplating her request. "Sure but first I have to make good on a promise I made to you last night." If he left the room now she'd jump out of bed and would be changed before he came back.

"Promise?"

"Yeah, I was pretty gutted having to play the gentleman an' all, especially considerin' how enthusiastic you were..." She groaned again and pulled the sheet over her face. He laughed. "...so I promised to at least try to get you naked this mornin'."

His hand began to move towards her under the sheet. She panicked and sat up suddenly, causing a pain to shoot through her head. She held the sheet against her with one hand whilst holding her throbbing head with the other.

"I'm sure I can trust you to be a gentleman this morning can't I Dempsey?" she asked, closing her eyes to try to stop the spinning.

"Err, no I don't think so. I was enough of a gentleman last night to last a lifetime," he said, sitting up and tugging at the sheet that she was holding.

Her eyes flew open and she held on tightly, edging backwards. He shuffled towards her and she wriggled further down the bed. He stopped and narrowed his eyes at her, considering his next move. He tugged on the sheet again, gathering the slack in his hands. Her eyes widened, how far was he going to go? Slowly the sheet began to stretch between them and she could feel a whoosh of air underneath it.

"Dempsey?" There was a note of warning in her voice.

He smiled, not at all put off. "Yes."

"You can't be serious."

"After the way you teased me last night I'm very serious!"

Her heart thudded nervously as the sheet tightened and the only thing she could do was to edge back towards him or lose her grip on the sheet.

"Ooh, this is working well," he observed, watching her moving closer.

"Come on Dempsey, be reasonable," she said anxiously.

He stopped and thought about it. "Nah, a promise is a promise," he said, continuing to gather up the sheet.

She looked around the room quickly, searching for anything which could cover her up if she made a run for it. Then, without stopping to think, she let go of the sheet and dived off the bed, grabbing one of his shirts which was lying on a chair and backing up against the wall with it held up against her.

_Hmm, so that's what her behind looks like in a skimpy pair of lacy knickers. The question is, what does it look like without them?_

He jumped off the bed and blocked her before she had a chance to edge herself around the room and out of the door.

She gave a nervous laugh. "Come on Dempsey, this is ridiculous. Just let me get a shower so we can get to work on time. God knows what time it is by now."

He swiftly closed the gap between them and placed his hands flat on the wall on either side of her, trapping her there. She stared at him in shock.

"Sorry, you were saying. Oh yes, you need to get a shower. Well then let me help you out of these," he said, reaching behind her and beginning with her bra, unclipping it with one quick movement. She whipped her hand behind her back and caught the loose ends but at the same time he was slipping the straps from off her shoulders.

"C'mon Harry let me fulfil my promise or we'll be late for work," he warned.

"I'm not letting you strip me naked!" she said in disbelief.

He grinned at her. "Oooh you are jittery this morning!"

She pulled a face at him. "Oh shut up! And move out of my way or Spikings is going to blow a fuse."

"Yep, he certainly will if you don't hurry up and let me make good on my promise," he said stubbornly.

"Oh for god sake, you can't keep me here against my will!"

He thought for a second. "Well okay then, I'll do you a deal. Either I let you walk outta here and you hand me back my shirt now, or you let me fulfil my promise and you can keep the shirt," he finished with a smug smile.

She thought about it. It wasn't much of a deal.

She shook her head to clear it. "Okay, hold on, so what exactly did you promise again?"

He looked amused at the fact that she was considering backing down. "That I would get you out of the rest of your clothes."

She looked down at the shirt she was holding against her. "But this isn't mine right?"

"Right."

"So I can keep this," she reconfirmed.

"Exactly."

He looked extremely smug. There had to be a catch somewhere. "And you didn't mention any..."

His grin grew. "Any what Harry?"

She was feeling jittery again. "Any...touching."

He sighed and looked forlorn. "Alas, I didn't."

She couldn't believe she was going to say this. "Okay, get on with it so we can get to work."

His face lit up with boyish excitement as she let go of the back of her bra and grasped the shirt for all she was worth.

He watched her and laughed. "You're gonna have to let go, at least one arm at a time."

She reluctantly let go of one side of the shirt, moving her other arm across her chest to keep the shirt against her whilst he slipped one of her bra straps off her arm. Then she swapped arms and the process was repeated until the bra fell and Dempsey swooped to catch it.

She rolled her eyes at him but wasn't in the position to wrestle it off him again. He held up the lacy black bra and whistled.

"Not bad. And now that's one down, one more to go."

She backed away from him again, suddenly nervous. "I've changed my mind. The deal's off!"

"Well okay but now you have less on to leave the room in than before, after you have given me back my shirt that is," he added.

She scowled at him as he held out his hand for the shirt. "Oooh you... get on with it then."

He grinned and reached behind the shirt, hooking his fingers under the lace sides of her briefs as she held the bottom of the shirt against her lower half. He paused for a moment, staring straight into her eyes and making her feel more jittery than ever.

"Will you please hurry up Dempsey?"

He'd fantasised about doing this for forever, he was going to take his time.

"Any last thing you want to say before I strip you naked?" he asked, prolonging her agony.

She squeezed her eyes shut. "Just do it!"

"Well okay then, if you insist," he grinned, easing her briefs slowly downwards. He kept his thumbs hooked into the lace but stretched out his fingers so that his hands ran slowly all the way down the whole length of her legs. As his hands moved downwards her eyes suddenly flew open when she realised that he wasn't going to let go until he had reached the floor. She lowered the shirt as far as it would go without revealing her breasts and made sure there was no gap which he could see up between the shirt and her dignity! It was a very precarious position to be in and she was acutely aware of the fact. His face was now directly opposite her bare thighs that were open to his gaze just underneath the shirt.

"Wow, the view from here is very…stimulating," he chuckled.

Her nervousness made her giggle. "Get on with it!"

He grinned. "Sorry, getting a bit distracted."

When he eventually reached the floor she stepped out of her briefs and he caught hold of them, standing up in triumph and holding them up. She whipped them out of his hands and quickly darted around him so that her back was now to the door across the room. She slowly backed towards it, now naked from behind.

"Ah, that's not fair. Hand them over," he said advancing towards her.

"Nobody said anything about you keeping my underwear as a bloody trophy!" She reached the door and grasped the handle.

"Well, okay then. I'll race you to the bathroom," he said, striding towards her.

She panicked and opened the door, backing around it and rushing down the corridor backwards. He jumped from behind the door, calling after her,

"Ready or not, here I come!"

She began to accelerate, stumbling slightly just before reaching the bathroom.

"Stay there you horror!" she laughed, finally reaching the sanctury of the bathroom and slamming the door behind her.

He chuckled and strolled up to the door, knocking on it.

"Harry," he called, "Just thought you'd like to know that I spoke to Spikings last night and he said that we didn't need to go into the office today. Said we could pop in to see Thomas in our own time and return to the office tomorrow!"

He heard a loud growl come from within the room.


	24. Chapter 24

Makepeace opened the bathroom door slightly and peered around it. She could hear Dempsey singing loudly in the kitchen along with the noise of banging and crashing of what sounded like plates, pots and pans. Emerging from the bathroom dressed in a bathrobe she had found hanging on the door, she slowly progressed down the hallway, stopping every now and again to give her throbbing head time to adjust to her movements. What now? She obviously needed to get changed but putting her cat suit back on was not an option for her. She needed clean, fresh clothes to make her feel anything close to human again. She'd sit down for a moment to think about her next course of action.

On reaching the lounge she just about managed to get to the sofa without her head exploding when Dempsey bounded into the room holding a spatula, wearing an apron and shouting out enthusiastically,

"Hiya honey, breakfast's on the way."

Makepeace grimaced with the sudden noise and sank down onto the sofa, holding her head.

"I'm really not sure that I…" she began.

He cut into her sentence. "Nothin' like a real New York breakfast to get you back on track."

"Hmm," she said, curling up in the corner of the sofa like a wounded animal. "I really should be getting home soon though."

"What for?" he asked. "You gotta eat and besides we don't have to go see Thomas till later so stay here and kick back. No big deal," he said disappearing back into the kitchen. She really couldn't muster up the energy to argue with him at that point so she wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her head against the back of the sofa.

Not long afterwards he reappeared in the lounge with a tray of breakfast for her. She eyed it dubiously.

"Not that I'm complaining Dempsey but what is it?" she asked.

He looked affronted. "It's breakfast, what d'ya think?"

"Yes but what are those?"

He looked extremely proud of himself. "Those are my homemade pancakes with maple syrup."

"And that?"

"Eggs over easy," he smiled.

"Eggs over what?"

"It's eggs," he frowned. "You never had breakfast before?"

"Not quite like this one, no. But it looks..." she tried to think of the word. "...different."

"Eat it!" he ordered. "It'll make you big'n strong."

"Well I'll be fine then if I ever take up female wrestling," she joked, breaking off a piece of pancake with her fork and tentatively lifting it to her mouth. He waited for her response. It actually tasted quite nice, or it would have done if it had been easier to swallow without causing a nauseous feeling in her stomach. Her hangover was now in full swing. She took a sip of the coffee he had placed on the coffee table for her but that didn't seem to settle her stomach either.

"It's surprisingly nice Dempsey, thanks," she smiled, waiting for him to stop hovering over her. He gave a satisfied nod and went back to the kitchen to collect his food, bringing it into the lounge, turning on the TV and sitting in a chair to enjoy his breakfast.

She pushed the food around on her plate with her fork and wondered how she was going to eat it without offending Dempsey by vomiting.

Dempsey suddenly laughed loudly. "Hey, remember these two?" he said, pointing to the television with his fork. Harry looked up to see Wile E Coyote pass Roadrunner and plummet straight off a cliff. He scrambled in mid air in hope of returning to the top but fell shortly afterwards into a truck full of explosives below. "I used to watch these on a Saturday afternoon regular...and Top Cat too, remember him?"

Harry shook her head at him in disbelief. "Dempsey, don't you think that we're a little too old to be watching cartoons now?"

"Ah, c'mon Harry, this is quality daytime TV!" he said, howling with laughter when the Coyote picked himself up but was startled when the Roadrunner 'beep, beeped' behind him, sending him shooting into the air where he crashed his head into an overhanging rock. Dempsey continued to demolish his plate full of breakfast whilst his eyes remained glued in fascination to the TV screen. Finally he put his knife and fork down onto his empty plate and looked across at Harry. She had managed to eat half a pancake but was looking incredibly green.

He frowned. "It aint workin' then?"

She gave up and put the plate down on the coffee table. "Why are you so cheerful and full of energy this morning? As I recall you had your fair share of alcohol last night too."

"Yeah well I think it was the taxi ride home that did the most damage to you Harry. You remember that?" he grinned.

She stopped to think. "Err, not especially. Why?"

"Well, there were two bottles of whiskey. One was almost empty and one was...well a lot fuller. Guess who grabbed the fuller one?"

She groaned and put her head in her hands, mumbling, "But I don't even like whiskey!"

He laughed. "Well, you sure had a taste for it in that taxi partner!"

"Please," she begged, "can we stop talking about whiskey?" She still had her head in her hands and was fighting the nausea and dizziness that her pounding headache was causing. He watched her for a moment then jumped out of the chair and headed for the kitchen. He returned with two glasses which he placed in front of her before throwing a packet of painkillers onto the sofa.

"Here, if all else fails this is Dempsey's kill or cure hangover solution. One, take two aspirin with cold glass of water," he said, handing her the first glass. She looked up then and grabbed the painkillers, taking the water off him and quickly swigging two pills down. "Two, drink this," he said passing her the second glass which had been filled with tomato juice. She looked at it dubiously. "Don't matter how you get it down you but you gotta drink it." She sighed and took the glass off him, taking tiny sips of it and cringing as she did so. He sat down again and continued to watch the cartoons, speaking absentmindedly as he gazed at the screen. "Wanna know why tomato juice?" he asked.

She looked at the glass in her hand. "Why?"

"Well, it's got almost everythin' your body needs."

"Almost?" she questioned.

He gave her a purposeful look and grinned. She tutted.

"Nah but seriously, they'd give it to the soldiers in the army when there wasn't much food left. Only they'd fill half a glass with peanuts and the rest with tomato juice. There's enough it that to keep a guy goin' for days. Protein, vitamins and all the rest."

"Really Dempsey? Fascinating," she said with some sarcasm.

He nodded. "It's true."

She bit the bullet and finished the rest of the glass in one go. "Well, you'd be a handy man to have around if we ever suddenly found ourselves at war."

"You bet."

She put the glass down and cautiously moved to lie with her head on the arm of the sofa. Dempsey was quite content to sit watching the cartoons and within half an hour her headache had actually receded a little. With the pain almost gone her stomach suddenly began to realise that it hadn't had food since yesterday afternoon and she eyed her plate of food. She sat up and reached out for the plate but Dempsey looked over at her with disapproval, standing up and taking the plate off her.

"You aint eatin' it cold. What did I tell you about the hangover cure. I'll get you some more breakfast," he said, disappearing into the kitchen again.

She called after him. "You don't have to go to all that trouble honestly Dempsey!"

He shouted back. "I aint stoppin' until you admit that I make the best breakfast you've ever eaten!" He began to sing again and the banging and crashing could be heard once more. She laughed to herself.

After twenty minutes he still hadn't returned and she felt well enough to move off the sofa so she headed for the kitchen to help him out and refill her water glass.

He turned when she entered the kitchen. "Just serving up," he announced, placing two large pancakes on top of her plate. She walked over to the sink and turned on the tap to fill her glass. He left the plate on the side and came up behind her, putting his hands on her waist and turning her around. She looked up at him in surprise. He smiled and pulled her closer, looking down at her dressed in his bathrobe.

"It suits you Harry. So what do you think of a stopover at my place then?" he asked, grinning. "Aint a stopover with me fun?"

She laughed. "Well I can honestly say that I've never had one quite like it."

His grin widened. "Yeah, it's been eventful. Wanna do it again sometime?"

She gave a small laugh and looked to the floor, unsure of how to respond. "Oh, the breakfast is getting cold," she eventually exclaimed, moving around him to pick up the plate. "And if we carry on like this you'll be in here for the rest of the day!"

He followed her back into the lounge and pretended to watch the cartoons but in truth he was more interested in seeing if she was enjoying his breakfast. Once she started to eat she was suddenly ravenous and she ate the whole plate full despite the fact that she was struggling with the quantity towards the end. She put down her empty plate and he turned to her.

"Well?"

She laughed. "It was the best breakfast I've ever eaten."

"Now you aint foolin' with me are you Harry?" he asked suspiciously.

She shook her head. "Not at all. It was the best American breakfast I've ever had."

His smile faded. "It was the _only_ American breakfast you've ever had."

"No but seriously, it was wonderful. Thank you."

He smiled.

"Well, I suppose I should get changed and go home now," she said.

"You could always stay a bit longer and we could go to see Thomas from here," he suggested.

"I need a change of clothes Dempsey," she pointed out.

"Hmm," he said thoughfully, "That's a problem. I guess you can't go anywhere from here without a change of clothes," he grinned.

"That's precisely why you are going to drive me home so that I can change," she replied.

"Yeah, but you aint got nothin' to wear for the journey," he said, throwing obstacles in her way.

"I'll just have to borrow something of yours to wear until I get home then," she came back.

He pulled a face. "Aint got nothin' to fit you and besides, my clothes aint your style."

She rolled her eyes. "It's not a fashion show Dempsey. Anything will do."

He thought for a while. "The traffic to your place is really bad this time of day."

She laughed. "No it's not!"

"In fact, if you think about it," he folded his arms and sat back in his seat looking extremely smug, "You could be stuck here for days with no way of getting home and no clothes to wear," he grinned at the thought of it. "My fantasy is comin' true!"

She growled at him and picked up a cushion, throwing it across the room at him.

"All right, all right, I'll take you home to change. But in a bit eh, we still have time to relax. Wait there," he said, jumping up and rushing out of the room. She watched him go and wondered what he was up to now.

He came back with a blanket in his hands and sat opposite her on the sofa. He took off his t shirt and pulled the blanket up over him. She looked at him suspiciously.

"Think my hangover is setting in, come here and make me feel better," he said, lifting up the blanket and gesturing her over. She glared at him. "What? Ah, cmon Harry, aint I been a perfect gentleman so far?"

"Well I wouldn't say 'perfect,'" she said, recalling the scene in his bedroom when he had her trapped against the wall.

"Near enough," he said, grabbing her arm and urging her over. She sighed and wriggled across towards him. He manoeuvred her into his embrace, sliding an arm around her waist and pulling her next to him whilst tucking the blanket around them both. She felt cocooned against his chest, warm and wonderfully comfortable. Probably too comfortable! She was suddenly acutely aware of what little physical contact she had had like that over the last few years and being close to a man like him, having all his attention on her, having him cook for her and look after her like he had that morning was something that she rarely experienced. She lay back against him and revelled in the feel of his warm skin and strong arms around her.

"We can't get too comfortable like this Dempsey," she said as a last attempt at being practical. "We do have to visit Thomas at some point today."

Dempsey was grinning and gazing down at her. He knew her only too well now and her body language was contradicting her words. It didn't matter though, he had Harry in his arms and he was more than happy.

"Never mind about that we have plenty of time to kill yet," he reassured her. "Besides, we have more important things to think about now, look, yogi bear is comin' on!"

She giggled and settled down under the blanket, holding his arms more firmly around her.


	25. Chapter 25

**The first of three chapters for now, two more after I've finished work in a couple of hours. Finally managed to get these done! Only about a quarter of the story left to write! lol**

**This chapter is extremely short i'm afraid but the next 4 are a lot longer.**

Harry drifted drowsily back into consciousness and opened her eyes. She was cocooned in a soft blanket which was warm and comforting but nonetheless alien to her. She threw the blanket back and sat up on the sofa, gazing around the room in bewilderment. The last thing she remembered was watching Yogi Bear and Boo Boo being chased around Jellystone Park by Ranger Smith who was following orders to transport them to a zoo. Then of course there was Dempsey who had been running his fingers rhythmically through her hair and rendering her helplessly drowsy.

"Dempsey?" she called out. No reply. "Dempsey!" she tried again. Nothing. She jumped off the sofa and went from room to room looking for him but the flat was empty apart from her. She wandered back into the lounge, running a hand through her hair and wondering what to do next. It was then that she noticed a piece of paper near to the sofa that had obviously fallen onto the floor when she jumped up moments before. She picked it up and read it.

**Gone to see Thomas. Figured you could do with more sleep. I'll fill you in when I get back. Your clothes are in the washing machine. Don't go anywhere! Dempsey.**

Don't go anywhere? Where on earth was she going to go without clothes to wear? Damn him! She could just see the smug grin on his face as he'd written the note and snuck off without her! This was ridiculous! She had to get home! She _should _have gone with him to see Thomas!

With determination not to be ruled by him she strolled into the kitchen and picked up the telephone, dialling the number of a local taxi company. Then she went to his bedroom, threw the doors of his wardrobe open and pulled out some tracksuit trousers and a jumper. She took off her robe and changed into the clothes, looking down at herself with a frown. The arms of the jumper hung loosely past her hands and the tracksuit trousers only needed a slight tug and they'd be down by her ankles! She growled with annoyance and searched in the wardrobe for a belt. She couldn't find one and as a last resort she pulled the tie off his robe and fixed it around her waist, turning the top of the tracksuit trousers over it in an attempt at making them more secure.

Suddenly the intercom buzzed making her jump and she ran to the buzzer, holding the button down and explaining to the taxi driver that she would be right down. She darted back into the lounge, grabbed the piece of paper and a pen that she found on the coffee table and scribbled a note on the reverse side of the paper.

**Gone home to put some clothes on! Will pick my clothes up from here another time. The taxi driver is waiting for me. Speak later. Harry.**

Rushing back into his bedroom she placed the note on top of the robe that was lying on his bed, grabbed her handbag and left, chuckling to herself.


	26. Chapter 26

Dempsey pulled up a chair beside a sleeping Thomas's bed and gently took hold of his hand. Thomas's eyes flickered and slowly opened.

"Hiya Pops. It's just me again."

"Ah hello young man. It's nice to see you again." Thomas looked past Dempsey with confusion. "But where is that young lady of yours?"

"Harry? Oh she's... sleeping at the moment," he replied with a grin.

Thomas looked surprised. "I thought that I was the only person who slept all day and was awake all night."

"Yeah well, we went to the pub last night. It was this guy's birthday and well..."

Thomas grinned, held up his hand and made a drinking gesture, giving Dempsey a knowing look.

He nodded. "We had one or two."

They both laughed but only seconds later Thomas began coughing and struggling for breath. Dempsey put his hand on Thomas's back.

"Easy Pops." He waited until Thomas had caught his breath and looked at him with concern. "Look if you need to rest I can come back another time."

"No, no, I'm fine. Fit as a fiddle, that's me. I'm used to visitors."

Dempsey doubted it. He doubted if Thomas ever had visitors and even Bessie had failed to notice that he was confused and alone, wandering the corridor, when they had found him that first night.

"You get family comin' to visit you often Pops?" he asked.

Thomas's eyes hardened. "My Vanessa passed away and then _he _left. I used to call him my son but now he's gone. A bad one he was."

"Sorry to hear that. What about other family though? Anyone else who comes to see you?" Dempsey questioned.

Thomas looked blankly back at him but then smiled after a moment and tapped Dempsey on the hand.

"You do young man. You and that fine young lady of yours."

Dempsey laughed. "She's not my young lady, we are partners... at work that is," he explained.

Thomas didn't look convinced. "Just work partners?" he questioned.

That was a difficult one and for some reason Dempsey found that he couldn't deny that there was more between them, any more than he felt comfortable admitting the truth.

Thomas noted his hesitation. "Wouldn't you like to be more than just 'work partners?'"

He was thrown by Thomas's directness and it must have shown in his expression. Thomas dismissed the look on his face with a hand gesture.

"Don't look at me like that young man. I haven't got to my ripe old age without learning a bit about life. And I'll tell you something else, life is too short and precious to waste time on pleasantries when you've got something important to say."

Dempsey wasn't sure if Thomas was talking about asking him a direct question or suggesting that he should say something important to someone else, Harry maybe. The concept unnerved him.

Thomas continued. "When you get to my age there is only one thing that a person fears most, you know what that is? Regret. The time when it is too late to do or say the things you should have. So I'm going to ask you straight. Is that lovely young lady the one you want?"

Dempsey was amazed at how Thomas could see so much in only the short time he'd known him. He struggled to reply but he had a respect for the things that Thomas had just said and so he tried to answer as truthfully as he could.

"I want her Pops but... it's difficult with her. There are complications."

Thomas looked at Dempsey sternly. "Nonsense. Complications is just another word for excuses. Or uncertainties. The only uncertainty that is excusable is if you are uncertain about how much you feel for her."

Dempsey looked taken aback. "I know how i feel. I care about her a lot."

"Care? Care is what you do for a pet dog or a potted plant!" he chastised.

Dempsey wasn't accustomed to hearing someone talk so directly about such things and he was quite speechless.

"Do you love her young man?" Thomas asked. Dempsey stared at him for a moment before nodding. "Then what is all this 'just partners at work' rubbish?"

Dempsey ran a hand through his hair. "We are very different. Like chalk and cheese." He looked at Thomas and expected a come back but Thomas just waited for Dempsey to explain more. "I'm American, she's a Brit, I'm loud, she's a lady, I like a shower and she's always in the bath." Thomas had a problem keeping a stern expression after hearing that one. Dempsey was aware that he hadn't got to the crux of the matter. "I'm just a regular guy but she's related to the bloody queen!" Thomas threw him a look. "Well... distantly, but that aint the point, what can I offer her?"

At last Thomas spoke and when he did his voice was a little softer than before. "If you love her like you say then you can offer her everything she really wants. You can give her affection and warmth, make her feel needed and loved, be there for her when she needs you, let her know that whatever she does you will always feel the same about her. And you can give her passion and the thrill of beginning a new life together, a life of loving that will grow and a bond that can't be broken, even when you are apart," Thomas thought of his Vanessa then. "And these 'complications' you are talking about will mean nothing compared to all that."

Dempsey didn't know what to say. He had never thought like that. He had thought that he knew a lot about life, had experienced everything, but at that moment he realised that there was so much more that he hadn't considered, that he hadn't valued enough. But still the insecurities rose from within.

"I want to be the one to give her all that but... it don't seem right...that I can't give her everythin'. I mean a life she's used to...a life she deserves."

Thomas sighed. "If she loves you then she'd be so distraught to know that this is what is coming between you."

Dempsey's head was buzzing. He had so many other things that he wanted to ask this man who seemed to have all the answers. Most of all he wanted to ask if he thought that she really loved him but he realised that that was a ridiculous question. There was only one person who could answer that and he would never believe it until he heard it from her anyway.

Dempsey suddenly became aware of how far they had digressed from their initial conversation and the reason he had gone there in the first place, to check up on Thomas.

"You said that people fear regret," Dempsey began broaching what he assumed would be a sensitive subject for Thomas but he continued all the same, encouraged by his directness. "Don't you think you might regret not talking to your son again? You know, tryin' to fix things with him."

Thomas gave a great sigh and gazed out of the window. "I have tried but he wouldn't see sense. He never will."

Dempsey's heart went out to Thomas. How could his own son leave his father alone and dying without coming to see him and trying to reconcile their differences? He took Thomas's hand again and drew his attention back to him.

"I remember my Pops. I was quite young when he died but I remember him as clear as he was here right now," he said, looking at Thomas. "He always had candy in his pocket to give to me, butterscotch buttons. He loved them. You know the great thing about your ma and pa's folks? They care for you like you're their own but they don't have motives for the things they say to you. You know, your own folks want you to do this 'n that for this 'n that reason but my Pops, he just wanted to make me smile all the time. Used to say there was always a way to fix things and if not," he laughed, "there was always butterscotch buttons."

Thomas smiled. "He sounds like a wise man."

"Yeah, he was. But you know he got ill, maybe too much candy eh?" he laughed, trying to make light of the conversation. "We used to visit him in hospital a lot, me and Ma. But I was just a kid and I didn't know how ill he was. I remember the visits like they were fun. Pops would tell us jokes and give us candy and you know I just assumed that he'd live forever. But then one day we went to the hospital and I asked if we were goin' to see Pops but I kinda said the wrong thing. I remember 'cause of the look on Ma's face. Turns out that we were goin' to see my cousin who had gotten beaten up by the street kids. I never even knew...Pops had already died months and months before. But like I said, I was just a kid so what did I know eh? But I would have kinda liked to see him just one more time, you know so I could tell him somethin'," Dempsey looked a little sad and lost. "I ain't good with sayin' stuff but I'd liked to have said somethin', you know, to tell him... that he was good at making people smile."

Dempsey felt Thomas's grip on his hand tighten and he suddenly realised how much he'd been talking, how much he'd shared with him.

"So anyway I didn't have no choice in sayin' goodbye but I figure that if you do then you should, 'cause you're right, Regret aint a good thing," he finished, wishing there was a way he could help reunite Thomas with his family.

Thomas sighed again and returned his attention to the window. "True. And if you don't have any choice you still feel regret."

Thomas had a look of such hopelessness about him that Dempsey found it hard to know what to say.

"What do you do all day here?" he asked suddenly with renewed energy. "You ever play cards? Me and Pops used to play cards a lot, he taught me to play real good. You think you'd be up to playin' a few games?"

Thomas turned back to Dempsey with a smile. "Oh, I should think so young man. Bessie will know where the cards are."

Dempsey jumped up with enthusiasm then and headed for the door. "I'll be back Pops. We can play Blackjack, that's a good one. But you'd better figure out your strategy though 'cause I play a mean game!"


	27. Chapter 27

**Two more chapters posted before this one, two more to go later.**

By the time Dempsey left Rainington Hall he was smiling and whistling to himself as he got into his car and headed for home. The sun had set whilst he and Thomas were playing cards and now the lights from the shop windows and the street and headlights from the cars all winked and flashed as he whizzed past. He felt an energy and excitement that had come from nowhere and his first thought was to get back to Harry but he stopped impulsively and parked on the high street along the way. He got out of the car and found a newsagents which he breezed into, searching the shelves and eventually enquiring at the counter for the items he sought. As it turned out the shop didn't have what he was looking to buy, in fact the lady told him that she had never heard of them, so he contented himself with purchasing a bag full of fruit drops instead.

When he got back to his flat he dropped his keys onto the hall table and dared himself to call out,

"Hi honey, I'm home!"

He wondered what Harry would make of that and if she had been waiting and wanting him to rush back. The flat was strangely quiet however and he searched first the lounge, then the kitchen and lastly the bedroom for her. Finally he saw the bathrobe that she had worn with a note on top of it and he suddenly feared that he had upset her and she'd gone storming off. He was pleasantly surprised however and the note brought a slow smile to his face. He laughed out loud after reading it. God she was impossibly stubborn and wilful, but he wouldn't have her any other way. The little minx!

Rushing back out into the hallway, he grabbed is car keys and left the flat.

Harry sipped her cup of tea and picked up the second file from the pile to study it. She had spent most of the day curled up on the sofa reading a book and doing little else. She really didn't have the energy. However, finally she had felt a twang of guilt at the thought that she hadn't gone with Dempsey to see Thomas and that had prompted her to haul herself off the sofa, make a cup of tea and tackle some outstanding paperwork that she had been putting off dealing with.

The doorbell rang and she froze for a second, wondering who it was but assuming that it was probably Dempsey. She put down the file and rose off the sofa to answer the door.

Dempsey was stood on the doorstep, grinning. "Ah, you put some clothes on then. Shame," he said strolling past her.

"Do come in Dempsey," she said sarcastically, closing the door and following him into her lounge.

"So, what we doin' tonight then?" he asked, pacing the room restlessly.

She watched him and tried to figure out his mood. He was acting a little oddly. But then he often did that she concluded. She walked around the sofa and took a seat again, picking up the file she had been studying.

"How was Thomas? Any more trouble with trespassers?" she asked him whilst flicking through the pages.

Dempsey finally took a seat opposite Harry but she noted that he was still restless as he fidgeted on the chair, picked up, looked at and put down every object on the table next to him. He seemed to have an excess energy about him.

"Nah, Thomas is as fit as a fiddle," he said, quoting the man himself.

Harry frowned. Fit as a fiddle? She doubted it.

"So you don't think he'll come back again then?" she questioned. Dempsey wasn't concentrating and didn't comprehend. "The trespassers," she reminded him.

"Oh, nah, don't think he'll be back. So, what you doin' then?" he asked.

She sighed. "Just catching up with a bit of paperwork. Thought I ought to."

He jumped up and snatched the file away from her. "No paperwork today. Spikings said."

She frowned at him and picked up another file off the pile. "I very much doubt that Spikings actually told us _not_ to do any paperwork. We may have got away with not going into the office today but I feel like I should do _some _work."

Dempsey sat down on the sofa next to her and whipped away the file, picking up the rest of the pile and placing it out of her reach.

"You've gotta learn how to relax and make the most of opportunities that come your way. Life is too short to waste time on paperwork!"

She watched him for a moment. That was very philosophical for him. What was going on? She went to reach around him for the files but he caught her hand and moved closer across the sofa, leaning towards her. She moved her head backwards, studying him and wondering what was going through his head. He moved suddenly, placing an arm around her, grabbing hold of her shoulder, putting his head next to hers and turning them around to look out of the window.

"Just think of all those people out there enjoying themselves," he said, pointing out of the window.

She squinted. "No, can't see anyone."

He looked sideways at her and shook his head. "No, I mean out there," he gestured again. "Out in the city that never sleeps."

"That's New York Dempsey. Wrong continent," she pointed out.

He pressed his head closer to hers and her eyes darted sideways at him. What on earth was going on with him this evening?

"Yeah but I mean think of all the people dancing and laughing and romancing," he grinned, and his eyes flicked to hers.

"Hmm, but I think I've had more than sufficient fun and frolics last night Dempsey. I really can't cope with another night out tonight. I'm staying in, sorry."

He shrugged and sat back, not put off. "No problem. A night in, some good food and a bottle of wine should be good too."

"Dempsey, I had in mind an early night."

His face lit up. "An early night," he grinned. "Yeah definitely, I'll go for that!"

She laughed. "No Dempsey. I meant that I need to get some sleep. We have to go back to work tomorrow and..." she bit her lip at the thought of it. "...well to tell you the truth, i'm not looking forward to it that much so I want to be at my best."

He took her hand and looked at her. "You worried after last night?"

He nodded sheepishly.

"Hey listen don't worry about it, I'll have a word with the guys. They'll keep their mouths shut, I'll make sure of it," he winked, trying to make light of the situation.

She gave him a warm smile. "Thank you." He watched her face though and he could tell that she remained unhappy with the situation. "Still, it would be entirely more bearable had Spikings not been there," she cringed.

"No big deal," he said with a dismissive gesture, "Spikings was tanked up on whiskey anyway. He probably doesn't remember much himself!"

She thought it unlikely but she appreciated Dempsey's kindness. She looked to the floor then but he placed a hand under her chin and lifted her face to him.

"It won't be as bad as you think," he insisted. "Cheer up sweetheart." He stroked her hand with his thumb. " Hey," he said suddenly, remembering something, delving into his pocket and pulling out a sweet. "Here, this is for you."

She looked at it with bewilderment. "What's this?" she asked, taking it off him.

He grinned. "It's smiley candy."

She did a double take. "It's what?"

"Yeah, it's candy that makes you smile," he explained. She laughed and looked down at the sweet. "See, it works," he said, watching her face. She had no idea why he had 'smiley candy' in his pocket but the sentiment touched her and she gazed at him, at a loss for words. He felt a little awkward then and stood up suddenly, taking the rest of the bag out of his pocket and placing it on the table next to her. "Tell you what, you keep the rest. Just in case you need them sometime," he said, casually strolling into the kitchen and shouting out, "So, want me to start cooking then?"

Makepeace's head shot up with a look of horror and she sprung off the sofa in a panic.

"No Dempsey, leave it to me. I'd like my kitchen to stay intact!"


	28. Chapter 28

**This is the 4th chapter today, one more to come in a bit.**

By the time Harry reached her kitchen Dempsey had opened every cupboard door and he was banging and clattering around amongst the saucepans.

"I figured we could cook dinner together tonight," he said, emerging from the cupboard and holding up a frying pan with triumph.

"Do you think that's wise," she said, looking dubiously at the frying pan in his hands.

"Sure. If we can bring down guys like Coltrane together we sure as hell can make a dinner together!"

"Hmm." She took the frying pan out of his hands. "Think we'd be safer with the hardened criminals! Look, you stand over there and you can peel and chop some vegetables," she said, pointing him in the direction of the chopping board, reaching into one of the open cupboards and taking out some carrots for him to chop.

He picked up one of the carrots and looked at it oddly. "What you mean these don't come out of a tin?"

She laughed. "No Dempsey. I can see I'm going to have to start with the basics. I'm assuming you know how to peel and chop those," she said, eyeing the carrots as she placed some chicken pieces into an oven dish.

"Sure," he said, and with a few loud chops the carrot had been very roughly cut and lay in four sorry looking chunks.

She turned to see the results. "Dempsey, you _are_ joking I hope."

He laughed and picked up another carrot, peeling it more carefully. "That was just a practise run."

She breathed a sigh of relief and went back to the task of preparing the chicken for the oven.

"You got a smaller knife than this?" he said, holding it up. "Or a peeler?"

"In this drawer. So you know what a peeler is then?" She sounded impressed.

"I've heard _of_ them," he joked, digging his fingers into her ribs as he moved around her to open the drawer at her side. His hand remained on her waist as he reached to find the peeler. It lingered there for a while before trailing across her back when he returned to the chopping board again.

She kept her eyes lowered as her face deepened in colour slightly. God, what was she like? He only had to touch her and she was all of a fluster.

"How did you learn to cook so proficiently then Harry?" he asked.

"Public school cookery lessons. They prided themselves at churning out proper ladies with all the appropriate skills."

"Wow, what else did they teach you?" he grinned. "I'm guessing that it was after high school that you learnt how to shoot a gun then."

"Hmm," she laughed, wrinkling up her nose, "it wasn't seen as the done thing. Still, I did learn the art of flower arranging, cake decoration and even crochet. So you see there is no end to my talents."

A wicked glint came into Dempsey's eyes. "Well, flower arranging, cake decorating and crochet aside, I'd like to test that theory out and experience first hand all your many talents."

She turned from her task and leant backwards on the counter, grinning at him. "Hmm, I'm sure you would."

He grinned back and watched her. She looked so sexy in a kitchen. He had no idea why. Maybe it was the way that she was leaning provocatively against the counter top. Well it seemed provocative to him.

She watched him assessing her and the room seemed to be filled with unspoken words and secret thoughts. Finally she spoke.

"I need to get in there," she said, gesturing towards the lower cupboard that he was standing in front of.

He looked down at it, thought for a moment and then opened it, standing aside. "Be my guest."

She crouched down, holding his gaze with her eyes. She just couldn't resist flirting with him. His eyes moved to her blouse as she rooted in the cupboard. He could see the slight evidence of creamy white skin which developed into soft curves under the material. He had become obsessed with finding out what was hidden underneath her blouses. Then his gaze moved to the hem of her skirt, which revealed the smooth length of her legs as she crouched, and he realised another obsession.

She stood, having pulled out some potatoes, and he returned to his task. Since he was taking so long preparing the carrots she decided to deal with the potatoes herself. They did want to eat that evening after all! She quickly dealt with the peeling and moved around him to the sink. On her way an impulsive mood hit her and she put her hand on his hip, moving him aside. He turned in surprise, looking down at her hand, and his eyes widened. A smile played at his lips. They stood for a moment, watching each other with amusement until she spoke.

"You're in the way. I need to get to the sink," she said, her eyes moving purposely to the sink and back.

He smiled and moved aside, watching her washing the potatoes. Her blonde hair fell across her flushed cheek and he would have loved to have known what she was thinking at that moment.

Finally she handed Dempsey the potatoes and instructed him to slice them thinly. Then she raided the cupboards and fridge, pulling out butter, bacon, seasonings and spices and she described to him how to fry them together.

"Now I know that you are up to the task. You are quite apt when it comes to frying. You've already made two breakfasts today!" she pointed out.

"Yeah, two of the best breakfasts you'll ever eat sweetheart. Well, until I cook you one again," he added. She smiled. So he intended for her to stay with him again then.

Dempsey chopped the potatoes, placed the carrots on the hob to cook and went to work on the frying whilst Harry prepared a creamy sauce for the chicken. Eventually the potatoes and vegetables were ready and they only needed to wait a few minutes for the chicken to finish cooking. Harry returned to the sink to wash her hands and Dempsey decided to butt in too, knocking her hands out of the way playfully to move his under the tap. She narrowed her eyes at him and pushed his hands away at which point he decided to see how far he could push her by flicking his hands under the water and splashing her. The water spilt onto her blouse and she stood there glaring at him. He couldn't quite work out her reaction though so he went on to tease her further.

"Come on Harry, you can take on hardened criminals but you aint up to taking on me?"

She thought for a moment before reaching for a cup, half filling it with water and throwing it over him. His eyes searched hers in delight and he grabbed the cup off her.

"Okay," she said nervously, "now we're even so put the cup down Dempsey."

He filled it to the top and slowly approached her with a wicked expression.

"Come on now, give me the cup," she urged, holding out her hand, more for protection than anything else. He made a sudden movement and she grabbed for the cup, spilling the contents over both of them. There followed a frenzy of grabbing, pushing and laughing as they fought to spill the remains of water over each other until he eventually caught her around the waist and lifted her up onto the counter top. They both stopped then, panting for breath and wondering how she had ended up on there. His eyes flicked to the wet transparency of her blouse and took in the outline of her lacy bra underneath it. He was hit then with a desire for her so strong that it shocked even himself.

Suddenly the air crackled with electricity but he was so busy picturing them naked and steamy on the counter top that he only suspected that she may have been feeling the same when his gaze moved to her face and he noticed a reciprocal spark in her eyes. His fingers began to stroke circles on her waist where his hands had remained and his eyes burned into hers. His gaze fell to her mouth and he began to edge towards her but just then, as quickly as her unguarded expression had reflected desire, it was replaced with sudden uncertainty and doubt.

_I don't get it. What's with that look? How am i gonna get past this stage and onto the next when it seems like we're goin' backwards! But she wants more. I aint that bad at readin' things! Damn it, I even said the 'L' word! Okay, admitted, she may have been slightly drunk then...or asleep. Or was she? Maybe she heard and that's why she's actin' like this. Nah, she can't have heard. Which means that she may not know how I feel! Damn it, why does this have to be so difficult?_

_Oh god if he kisses me now it's all going to get too heated too quickly! Is that why he's here tonight? To get me into bed? Not that it's his fault he thinks that's what I want after my behaviour last night! What a nightmare! I hope he doesn't think that I just want a casual affair!_

They remained there, seemingly frozen in time and engrossed in their own thoughts until something snapped in Dempsey's head and he surprised Harry with a sudden question.

"Aint it time we had a proper date yet?"

That was something she hadn't expected. Her face lit up and she suspected that she may have looked a little too keen.

"I suppose that it is," she replied, trying to sound as casual as possible. He frowned and she felt a sudden panic that she'd sounded too casual. To hell with it! Her face broke out into a bright smile. "Definitely it is," she amended.

His smile matched her own then. "Great. This weekend then. Not on a school night eh, so we can stay out past midnight," he teased.

She laughed and jumped off the kitchen counter. "This weekend it is then. Come on, the dinner should be ready by now."


	29. Chapter 29

Makepeace took some cutlery and place mats out of the kitchen drawers and went into the lounge to lay the table whilst Dempsey found a bottle of wine and opened it. He passed her in the doorway when she was on the way back into the kitchen and he caught hold of her around the waist whilst they did a small dance, trying to get past each other. He seemed to be trying his best not to let her get past however and she eventually stood back, slapping him on the arm.

"Move out of the way silly," she chastised. He grinned and eventually stood aside. She moved back into the kitchen to transfer the food onto the plates and he placed the wine glasses onto the table before filling them.

"You want music?" he called out through the doorway.

"Why not," she smiled. "Something relaxing."

He grinned, searching for a cassette, placing one into the player and pressing play. "Smoochie," he mouthed to himself. He turned the volume down so that the music became a soft background noise and took a seat when she re-entered the room with two plates of food.

"Chicken a la Dempsey and Harry," she smiled, placing one of the plates in front of him.

"Impressive," he said, looking down at the food.

She put down her plate and sat opposite him. "I know. Who would have thought it?"

He picked up his fork and sampled the food, smiling and shaking the fork at her. "You know, as a team... we're unstoppable!"

She tasted the food herself and nodded. "It would appear so," she smiled.

As they began to eat he asked her how she had prepared the chicken and made the sauce and she explained it to him, surprised that he was interested.

She hadn't thought that she would be able to stomach any of the wine however after she had eaten some food she risked a sip, and one sip lead to another and another. The wine complimented the food wonderfully and she began to relax, enjoying Dempsey's company and the meal they had prepared together.

"So did you spend the whole of the afternoon with Thomas then?" she asked.

"Yeah, we talked a bit and then played a few games of cards," he replied.

She contemplated that for a moment, watching him eat. "Well, you seem to have enjoyed yourself."

"I did," he admitted.

She couldn't work out if he wanted to expand on the conversation or not but she was intrigued about the whole thing and so she questioned him more.

"What did you two talk about then?"

He paused momentarily with his fork halfway to his mouth. "Oh, this and that."

"You're being rather secretive," she pushed. She was itching to know and besides, it was part of their case she convinced herself.

He watched her for a while before speaking. "We talked about his family and...my grandpa," he finally said.

She gave him a knowing look. "He reminds you of your grandfather doesn't he?"

He nodded. "Yeah, kinda."

There followed a short silence whilst they finished their meals and both of them became thoughtful. Dempsey placed his knife and fork down and waited until she had done the same before picking up his wine glass and moving to the chair next to her. He topped up her wine and held up his glass for them to clink.

"To grandpas," he said, clinking with her. "And to you and me, partner," he winked, clinking again and sipping his wine. She smiled and sipped hers.

He held her gaze for a few moments then, mulling something over in his mind and wondering how to voice it.

"Harry," he began.

"Yes."

"What makes you happy?" he asked, throwing caution to the wind.

She looked taken aback. "Wow, that's a very broad question."

"Hmm." He thought a bit more and then an idea come to him. "Tell you what, let's do a kind of game. You say somethin' first, then I will, then you, until we run out. See who can last longest," he challenged.

"Okay," she said with some uncertainty, and then wracked her brains for something to say. "Who goes first did you say?" she asked, playing for time.

"You," he replied.

"Maybe you should go first...just to show me how it's done," she added.

"Okay," he said confidently, until he gave it some thought and began to realise that this game may not be as easy as he'd imagined. "On second thoughts ladies should go first," he backtracked.

She grinned. "Shall we leave this game for another time?"

He frowned. "No, no. I'll go first then." He thought again and she took the opportunity to think of her own idea. "Got it. Putting some scum bag behind bars," he said, triumphantly.

"Me too," she said quickly in reply.

He pointed at her. "Nah, that don't count. You aint allowed to copy mine!"

"Who said so?" she asked.

"Me, I invented the game!" he exclaimed.

She doubted that she would get away with that one anyway. "Okay, being with good friends," she said, using up her next idea. He nodded and his brain was in chaos again trying to think of the next thing to say. He hadn't expected her to come back with something quite so quickly. "Now your turn," she said, putting him under further pressure.

"Okay! Give me a minute!"

She watched him with amusement as she sipped her wine.

He looked at the table. "A good meal," he said finally in desperation.

"Good wine," she countered, holding up her glass.

Damn it! This wasn't exactly going to plan. He had a sudden idea. Okay so it wasn't exactly getting to the heart of the matter but it was all he could think of.

"You and me beatin' Spikings at Poker!"

She laughed and that gave her another idea. "Chas trying to find Spikings's whiskey bottle!"

He grinned. "Yeah, that's a good one. Oh, fry with the beer hat on!"

She smiled and watched him smiling and she realised something else that made her happy, not just something that made her laugh but something that made her really happy.

His eyes moved over her face, alight with animation, and the smile that lit up her eyes, and he felt something that he always felt when he saw her like that.

They sat there, searching each other's eyes and the silence stretched on.

_Does he know?_

_Can she tell?_

"Aren't we sidestepping somewhat?" she said suddenly. "I mean I'm assuming that the sight of Fry wearing a beer hat doesn't make you ecstatically happy!"

"Nah, I guess not," he laughed.

"Being wanted," she said suddenly with a burst of courage.

The atmosphere abruptly changed with her statement and his eyes intensified. "Being needed," he said instinctively without thinking.

Her eyes clung to his. "Being held," she said softly.

He had the strongest urge to do just that but he bided his time to see what else she would say. "Being close to someone," he said, taking her hand in his.

She looked down at it. "Sharing affection with someone," she whispered, finding it hard to get the words past the emotion in her throat.

He reached out and gently placed his hand on her face. She looked up at him and he slowly moved his lips towards hers.

"A kiss," he whispered back, closing the gap and brushing his lips against hers in the most tender way. "And holdin' someone," he finished, standing up and pulling her into his arms.

He held her closely and she rested her cheek against his chest, taking great pleasure from his closeness. He put a hand in her hair and kissed the top of her head before tightening his arms around her.

"Let's move to the sofa," he whispered.

She pulled back then and the uncertainly was back in her face. "Just for a bit eh Harry," he assured her. She smiled and moved with him.


	30. Chapter 30

"Let's share some affection for a bit eh?" Dempsey said, sitting on the sofa and urging Harry to sit with him.

She sat down and he turned to her, resting one elbow on the back of the sofa and reaching out with his other had to touch her cheek and play with her hair. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, nestling her face against his hand. He watched her and took enjoyment out of pleasuring her. Her neck and collarbone were just near enough to his other hand for him to fondle and trace patterns across the skin that was exposed by her blouse. He thought to himself how much pleasure two people could experience from touching. It was funny because before they had ever kissed she had always avoided any physical contact like the plague and he had had the sense that she was not a very tactile person, and yet there she was that night actually admitting to wanting to be touched. He could also see it in her expression and sense it in her reaction to him. Why had it taken them so long to share physical pleasure? What was stopping her from asking for more, even though her body so obviously wanted more? It had to be a trust issue with her; what else could it be? Well, she'd trust him eventually to let it happen. He just hoped that it would be sooner rather than later.

Harry revelled in the feel of Dempsey's hands. God it was heaven to be touched by a man like him. He was so incredibly good at this. She'd never met anyone who could invoke such a reaction in her from the slightest touch. In fact, he didn't even need to touch her at times, just the expression in his eyes was enough to make her tingle all over.

Leaving her collarbone, he ran his hand down the length of her arm and entwined his fingers in hers, lifting her hand up. He moved closer to her and kissed her fingers in his. She opened her eyes and when their gazes met she experienced one of those tingling moments. He moved to kiss her wrist and brush his lips against the tender skin of the inside of her arm where her sleeve had fallen back.

"You have such incredibly soft skin Harry. How'd it get to be so soft?" he said, almost to himself. He kissed his way back up her arm to her wrist again and breathed in her perfume. It was a smell that always sent his senses reeling; it meant that Harry was near. He rested his lips against her wrist and felt the fluttering inside.

His eyes rose to hers and he grinned. "Your pulse is racing Harry. Now why could that be?"

She gave a small laugh and looked down.

"Expectation eh?" he put to her. "So where do we go from here?"

"We should probably..." she began, looking up, but she was cut off in mid sentence when she found his lips suddenly on hers.

He kissed her softly at first, his lips brushing and tugging gently at hers but the softness of his lips felt so sensual that she very quickly realised that she wanted more.

"Mmm, this feels good," he murmured against her lips. "You're wanted sweetheart, you're definitely wanted. Now let me hold you," he said, taking her hand and pulling her forward.

He wanted her on his lap, he could hold her more closely like that, but she seemed a little reluctant to move there. "I need you closer to me Harry, come here," he prompted.

She finally moved to him and his arms enveloped her as he returned to the kiss. With his arm around her waist and his other up her back, he put his hand in her hair and held her head to his. Their closer proximity made it harder for him to keep the kiss light and he sensed that she felt the same when she arched towards him. His lips gently nudged hers open and her heart leapt with excitement. His tongue slid past her lips, meeting hers and strengthening the intensity of the kiss. He tilted his head and caught first her lower and then her upper lips in his whilst his tongue tasted and teased the inside of her mouth. A small moan escaped her as the kiss began to take away her control and hearing it heightened his desire for her tenfold. Suddenly the kiss deepened and their lips slid moistly over and over each others, taking away all control from both of them. He groaned and took in a huge breath of air before returning to her lips with renewed fervour. His hands moved restlessly into her hair, over her shoulders and down her back until, of its own accord, one of his hands moved to claim her breast. She suddenly realised that the situation was spiralling rapidly to the point of no return. She put her hands on his chest and pushed away from him, tearing her lips from his with a great gasp. He gazed at her, dazed and confused as they sat there, both of them gasping for breath.


	31. Chapter 31

**I have posted another chapter before this today.**

"I think that might be a little bit too much affection," Harry said wryly, putting some space between Dempsey and herself.

"You can never have too much affection," he replied, moving to kiss her again.

She halted him. "In this case I believe you can."

He paused and searched her eyes. "Why?"

"Things are going too far," she answered.

"Too far? What constitutes too far?" he asked.

God, did she have to spell it out for him? She suddenly felt awkward and searched her mind for a reply.

"Too much touching," she eventually replied, not wanting to suggest that they might end up in bed together.

He shrugged. "Ok, ill cut out the touchin' and just stick to the kissin'."

She shook her head. "That's not going to work."

"Why?"

Good grief, he wasn't making this easy for her.

"Because the kissing will progress to touching."

"Not if you don't want it to," he came back.

That was the problem though, she did!

"Look, I won't push it if you don't want me to. Let's just return to the kissing and you can tell me to stop if you think I'm going too far," he assured her.

She groaned and ran a hand through her hair. "I think we should stop the kissing."

"Why?"

"Because..."

"Because what?" he pushed.

She suddenly felt strung with tension at his intense questioning. "Because I..." She was finding it hard to think.

"You what?" he asked.

She covered her face with her hands and finally shouted out, "Because I won't be able to stop!"

He smiled slowly and watched her with excitement in his eyes. If he was honest he had hoped she would say something like that. It indicated that they were getting ever closer to making love and, despite the fact that he would never want it to happen unless she was one hundred percent sure, the thought that her body could be powerless to stop thrilled him.

He took her hands away from her face and kissed her on the cheek. "Okay, how about we turn on the TV for a bit and just cuddle up?"

She nodded, grateful that he had finally stopped the scrutiny.

He turned the television on and returned to the sofa, resting in the corner of it and pulling her so that she was leaning backwards onto him. He wrapped an arm around her middle, kissed her again on the cheek and stroked her hair with his other hand before picking up the remote control to see what was on the TV. Flicking through the first two channels he stopped and looked in interest at the third one.

"Hey, this aught to be our kinda thing. Think I've seen this film before, it's about some crazy guy who's obsessed with this woman. Now this guy," he pointed to the screen, "he's NYPD but he ain't the best. Still I think he busts the guy in the end."

She moved her head sideways to look at him in disbelief. "Dempsey, you've just told me the whole story. Is there any point in me watching it now?"

He frowned. "Sure there is...we can laugh at how slow and dumb this New York cop is."

She shook her head and laughed, turning her attention back to the screen.

As time passed however she found her mind wandering from the film and contemplating her earlier admission, that she wouldn't be able to stop. That unnerved her considerably. Although she reasoned that she had given Dempsey the perfect opportunity to push his luck if he had wanted to with the knowledge that she would not be able to stop him, and yet he hadn't done that. He really must want to do this thing properly and wait until she was ready.

Suddenly she realised that she was aching from sitting still in the same position, or maybe it was because she had been unconsciously tensing up, and she moved her head and shoulders sideways to rest them backwards against the sofa cushion. He glanced at her and she smiled so his eyes returned to the film, but not before he placed his arm around her shoulder and threaded his fingers into her hair. She tried again to take an interest in the story that was unfolding on the screen but again her mind seemed to be working overtime on other things, this time the game that they had played earlier and the kissing that had ensued, turning so heated so quickly. Her eyes flicked to his and to her surprise her wasn't looking at the screen, his head was bent sideways slightly and his eyes were fixated on the opening of her blouse.

"Dempsey!" she exclaimed, putting a hand up to her blouse, "Keep your eyes on the screen!"

She startled him and he looked a little guilty. "I was just..." he began.

"I know what you were doing," she said, tutting and gesturing towards the TV with her eyes.

Dempsey chuckled and looked back at the screen. She slowly lowered her hand but found that she was trying her best not to smile, she had no idea why. She supposed that in a way it was quite flattering that he was so fascinated with her body. She began to imagine then what it would be like to have his eyes on her nakedness and she felt a sudden flush creep into her face. To make matters worse it looked as if the cop was becoming involved with the woman he was supposed to be protecting as he kept taking every opportunity to get close to her. Oh lord, he was going to kiss her. Very unprofessional, she thought. God, he was getting more unprofessional by the minute! Please don't let this develop more! Oh no, it was developing. Harry waited with trepidation to see how much more. She risked a quick glance at Dempsey to see that he was staring at the screen with a grin on his face. Great! She wondered if he had remembered this scene. He probably had and the look on his face made her even more anxious about how much of their lovemaking was going to be shown. The woman looked as if she was way past refusing him as they kissed wildly and his hand moved underneath her top. Then his other hand was busy riding up her skirt and she let out a groan.

Harry put a hand to her face and shifted awkwardly in her seat. The sounds of their arousal began to fill the room as the man quickly made light work of the buttons on the woman's top and shrugged of his own shirt. How much more Harry wondered, feeling acutely aware of her rising embarrassment. Soon the woman's bra had hit the floor and the man's mouth had replaced it. Dempsey's grin widened. The kissing became more frantic and the man moved lower, finally fumbling somewhere between them and making the final move.

Okay, now it would end... but no, apparently not. The moment the man had obviously become intimate with the woman to Harry's consternation she found herself imagining that it was her and Dempsey and her blush deepened. Dempsey turned to take a quick look at her and he smiled wickedly. How sexy she looked sat there biting her lip and blushing furiously. The groans and moaning got louder and Harry's face got hotter. She suddenly felt an overpowering frustration by watching their lovemaking, as Harry's arousal had nowhere to go. At last the couple's passion reached a shuddering end and they lay, flushed and drowsy in each other's arms.

Ironically, although Harry had at first been desperate for the scene to end, now she suddenly wished that it hadn't and she would have liked to see it again. What was she thinking? No she wouldn't, she tried to convince herself. Then she made the drastic mistake of glancing in Dempsey's direction and the moment their eyes met sparks seemed to fly. His eyes told her in no uncertain terms that he would like to do all of that to her and more, and suddenly her resolve broke and her body was taking over. She growled with frustration and in one quick movement she was on top of him. He looked momentarily astounded but then the heat was back in his eyes and their lips collided together seconds later.

"Oh god Harry, yes!" he moaned, moving from her lips to drag kisses down her top. She threw her head back and held his head there, contradicting her actions with her words.

"You can't do this. You've got to stop!"

He laughed in between trying to kiss as far down her top as he could. "Sorry Harry, I don't have as much control as you."

She was well aware of the irony of her last plea, considering it was her who had thrown herself at him, but she just couldn't stop herself. What was worse was that her hands had unwittingly made their way up his shirt and were reaping havoc all over the contours of his chest. He groaned and moved his hands up her blouse in a similar way. He found her breast and both of them filled the room with tortured moans. Then he suddenly removed his hands and went to unbutton her blouse, impatient with the material which was blocking his way. He returned his mouth to hers whilst he slid the buttons out of their holes, hoping to distract her long enough to complete the task. She suddenly felt cool air hit her upper body and she opened her eyes to see him gazing down at her lacy bra with fascination. He moved his hands then to the catch at her back but she quickly grabbed hold of his hands and brought them forward.

His eyes moved to hers. "Let me take it off," he asked. "I want so much to see you Harry."

"I can't Dempsey, not now. I'm sorry."

"But you want me to. Why won't you just let this happen?" he appealed.

She looked torn. "I need more then just sex," she admitted.

"But we have more. I care about you Harry."

Care. He had said that to her before but somehow that wasn't enough. Maybe if she could slow things down between them and they began to date things would develop and he would find that his feelings went deeper than that. The only problem was with the slowing things down part.

Dempsey could see her mind working overtime but he knew that she still had uncertainties.

"Just let me see you sweetheart, that's all. Then we'll stop," he pleaded.

She shook her head. "I can't."

"Okay," he nodded, pausing for a moment before speaking again. "But just imagine Harry what it would be like." His face was full of animation. "Your naked breasts in front of me," His eyes were full of excitement. She breathed in deeply and looked to the ceiling. "My hands on you, my mouth..." She cut him off suddenly by placing her fingers over his lips.

"Please Dempsey, stop. I know it was my fault this time but you promised not to push," she reasoned.

He took hold of her fingers and kissed them. "Okay. I guess that we can't very well go further when we haven't even been on our first proper date yet eh," he smiled. "I had just better watch you before that though, in case you go taking away all my control again," he said, looking down at the way she was seated on top of him. She bit her lip and moved off him. He stopped her from putting too much distance between them though and took her face in his hands to kiss her tenderly on the mouth.

"You're such a passionate woman Harry," he whispered. "I never thought that I'd find a woman who could match my passion but you do," he said in amazement. "Your problem is that you hold it back too much... and then it all resurfaces in a rush like that," he grinned.

She smiled and laughed briefly. Then he seemed to be mulling something over in his mind.

"Harry... you ever get intimate on a first date?" he asked suddenly.

"I never have done yet," she replied.

"Maybe I can persuade you to break with tradition eh," he winked.

She had no doubt that he could.

"Anyway, let's finish watching the movie," he said, settling back into his seat and urging her to do the same.

She sat back but looked at him suspiciously. "There aren't anymore scenes like that one I hope."

He chuckled. "Nah, no more like that." His eyes darted to hers then and he grinned wickedly. "By the way, if you ever feel like watchin' that scene again I have the film on video at home."


	32. Chapter 32

Harry and Dempsey finished the bottle of wine and they finished watching the film. As the titles were rolling Harry sat up and stretched. Dempsey glanced sideways at her and quickly grabbed the remote control off the side table, flicking the channels for something else for them to watch in the hope that she wasn't going to want him to go home just yet. Her eyes flicked from the remote control to the television.

"Hey look, the Twilight Zone. You ever watch any of these?" Dempsey said. He had never actually watched one himself. "They're not bad."

"It's a bit la…" she began, but was interrupted by Dempsey.

"I could make us a coffee. What d'ya say?"

She smiled. "Well, if you're offering to make the drinks then why not? I don't think I have the energy to move," she said, leaning back against the sofa cushions.

Dempsey jumped up. "I'll be back."

The Twilight Zone, hmm. Definitely late night TV which meant that it had to be at least midnight. Harry was aware that she really ought to go to bed if she was going to face the following day at work with a clear head. She rested her head against the back of the sofa and turned it to watch Dempsey through the open door making the coffees in the kitchen. He had a contented smile on his face and as he took some mugs out of the cupboard he began to whistle the theme tune to the Twilight Zone. Her eyes softened as she watched him and she had to admit to herself that she really didn't want him to go.

He brought the coffees back into the lounge and placed them on the coffee table before sitting back on the sofa. Then he gestured for Harry to move closer and put his arm around her whilst reaching for first her mug and then his. She settled back against him and took a sip of her coffee.

She didn't really concentrate much on the programme. For a while she pondered what the following morning would be like at work, hoping that nobody would mention Fry's birthday at the pub. Then she decided not to dwell on that and she found herself going through the events of the day, the breakfasts, the cartoons, their meal together and finally the passionate kisses they had shared earlier. God, she probably shouldn't dwell on that either! She put down her coffee mug and tried to focus on the TV screen.

Dempsey wasn't really watching the programme. He was trying to figure out what they would do when it finished and how he could convince her to let him stay. He knew that she wouldn't want sex with him that evening. Well actually, she most obviously did want it judging by her reaction to his kisses earlier but she wasn't going to let it happen. He wasn't entirely sure why but he would wait. At that point he just didn't want to leave her for some reason. He looked down at her and let his eyes wander over her face. The way her hair fell across her cheekbone and lay against her neck, the way her eyelashes framed her soft blue eyes, eyes that when he looked into them he just wanted to give up the struggle and tell her everything, her exquisitely shaped lips, damn it, he'd better not dwell on those, and her nose, that was so cute. He'd never really considered a woman's nose before, how could a nose be cute? He had no idea but hers was. What about her ears? He couldn't see them but he remembered on several occasions whispering into them, or taking her earlobes into his mouth. She liked that. He suddenly had an insane urge to see her ears, he missed them. Now he was being real dumb! Damn it! He lifted his hand and swept her hair aside. She looked back at him and saw him staring at the side of her face.

"Dempsey, what on earth are you doing?" she asked.

He smiled. "I'm checkin' out your ears."

She did a double take. "You're doing what?"

"Yeah, I'm seein' if they're as cute as I remember them," he laughed.

"You didn't put something odd in that coffee of yours did you?" she chuckled.

"Nah, and they are by the way," he replied, tracing his finger around one.

She laughed and turned back to the television. He continued to appreciate the shell like shape of her ear until he found himself bending his head and kissing it lightly. Her eyes darted to him and she wondered if she should stop him, but then again he was only kissing her ear! It's not as if much could develop from that! She turned her attention back to the television. He replaced his lips with his finger again and ran it around her ear and down to her earlobe where he contemplated taking it into his mouth. Maybe that was pushing his luck. Then his eyes were drawn downwards to her neck and before he knew it his lips had moved down to it. He found one spot and brushed his lips gently against it. She kept her eyes glued to the television and tried to ignore the tingling that was beginning to develop. His lips started to wander then, down her neck and up again, pressing small soft kisses against her skin. Then his eyes caught sight of her earlobe and the temptation was too much, he caught it in his mouth. She would have to stop him now, the tingling was turning heated. She moved her head, forcing his mouth off her and looked up at him to tell him to stop but when their eyes met she suddenly couldn't seem to find her voice.

"Just one more kiss Harry? Just a small kiss," he pleaded

She wanted more than anything to let him kiss her but she knew as well as he did that it would develop, and it was getting so late too.

"Dempsey, I don't think that's a good idea and I really should be getting to bed…"

He cut her off. "Okay, no kissing but we have to watch the end of this, it's good," he lied. He hadn't watched any of it.

She thought about it. "Fine, but just concentrate on the screen."

His eyes moved to the television and he tried once more to focus on the programme.

It was only fifteen minutes later when the late hour began to catch up with Harry and her head felt too heavy to hold up. She'd rest it back against Dempsey for a moment and wait until this programme finished, it would have to finish soon. Once her head was rested however her body began to think it was time to sleep and her eyes kept drifting shut. Dempsey looked down at her and felt a little guilty for keeping her up. She struggled to keep her eyes open for a further ten minutes until her body felt exhausted and she was already half asleep. Finally Dempsey snatched up the remote control and turned off the television. She was only vaguely aware that he had done that.

"This is stupid," he said, standing up suddenly, scooping one arm around her waist and the other under her knees and lifting her off the sofa. "Neither of us wants me to go. I'm taking you to bed."

She was far too tired to argue and she rested her head against his chest as he carried her upstairs.

Once in her bedroom he threw back the bedcovers and placed her on the bed. When her head hit the pillow she was practically asleep but he reached down and unbuttoned her blouse. Her eyes opened then and she pulled the bedcovers over herself.

"You take it off then, you can't sleep in your clothes," he said.

She took her arms out of her blouse and threw it onto the floor before unzipping her skirt and wriggling out of that too. That was as much exertion as her body could deal with for that evening and finally she was asleep. He stood over her for a while, watching her and trying to decide what to do next. Damn it, he finally made a decision and stripped off first his shirt and then his trousers. Moving to the other side of the bed he got in beside her and instinctively wrapped his arms around her. It felt so right. He lifted a hand and stroked her hair before kissing her on the back of her head.

"Goodnight sweetheart," he whispered. And at that point he felt so much for her that he didn't know what to do with all that unspent emotion. If he said that he loved her a thousand times it wouldn't come close to expressing how he felt.


	33. Chapter 33

Harry was lying under Dempsey. He gazed down into her dazed blue eyes. Her face was flushed, her hair untamed. She lifted her head up to him and offered him her lips. He needed no encouragement and kissed her hard. She moaned and moved against him, twisting her body as though in torment. He could feel the satin and lace of her nightdress against his skin and her soft curves pressed against him. This is what he'd been waiting for, dreaming of, and his excitement was overwhelming. Her hands moved between them and she touched him intimately, saying,

"I can't stop!"

"Don't stop," he said, "Don't stop Harry!"

He reached down and found the hem of her nightdress, easing it upwards.

"Yes, yes," she encouraged him.

He couldn't wait any longer and dragged the flimsy covering of lace he found underneath her nightdress off her. Then he was between her legs and she was lifting herself up to him, begging him to go further. He was so aroused; he'd never experienced such arousal.

"Harry!" he called out.

"What? Dempsey, what is it?" he heard her say and suddenly she was beside him, looking up at him in confusion.

He blinked and tried to focus through the haze of his desire.

"Hey, it's okay, think you were dreaming," she laughed, watching the turmoil in his face. "You made me jump then! Were you saving me from the bad guys Dempsey?" she teased.

"Yeah, yeah, somethin' like that," he said, pulling away from her and sitting up suddenly, looking confused and feeling an intense need to be back in his dream.

"We should get up soon and go to work. It feels incredibly cold though. I'll put the heating on for a while and we can wait until it warms up," she said, grabbing her robe to pull it on, jumping out of the bed and rushing onto the landing.

He groaned and ran a hand through his hair, collapsing back onto the pillow and staring up at the ceiling. The very last thing he wanted to do was to go to work now! He wanted to stay in that bed with Harry and make his dream a reality! He was also uncomfortably aware that his body still thought it was in the dream!

Minutes later Harry re-entered the room. Dempsey's eyes roved over her as she stood there dressed in her robe, and from what he could remember, just her underwear underneath. She saw his expression and hesitated, unsure of whether to get back into the bed with him. He wondered what the chances were of getting her to say 'I can't stop' in reality that morning but he concluded that they would have to be at work soon, and when he made love to her he certainly didn't want to have to rush. She shivered suddenly and he lifted the bedclothes up for her to join him again. She eyed the space next to him.

"Come on," he urged. "I'm gettin' cold here myself!"

She moved slowly towards the bed, contemplating the wisdom of getting back in, until suddenly the coldness of the room took over and she bridged the last gap in a rush, running to the bed and diving back under the covers.

"Brrr, it doesn't feel like summer at all!" she said, reaching for Dempsey.

He laughed and wrapped the bedclothes around them both. "Oooh, you have goose bumps," he chuckled, running his hands over any exposed skin he could find.

She slapped his hands and tried to stop them from unfastening her robe. "We have ten minutes only and then we have to get up," she warned him.

"Yes mam," he replied, giving up on the robe in favour of getting her as close to him as he possibly could. He scooped an arm around her waist and yanked her towards him. She suddenly found herself pressed hard against his body, their legs entwined. He didn't stop there however and wrapped his arms even tighter around her.

"Dempsey! I really don't think we can possibly get any closer!"

He grinned. "I can think of a way we could!"

"Hmm," she grinned back, looking downwards, "I can tell!"

"Lady Harriet, how shameful for you to point that out," he mocked in a fake British accent.

"Well I can hardly avoid it!"

"Stop tryin' to avoid it then and let's make the most of it!" he said, letting his hands wander again.

She wriggled away from him. "Think I'm warmed up enough now! Work time!" she said, jumping out of the bed.

"I'm warmed up enough all right!" he mumbled, watching her disappear out of the room, "The problem is now how to cool down!"


	34. Chapter 34

Makepeace followed Dempsey through the outer doors of the SI10 headquarters with a nervous churning feeling in her stomach. As they approached the office entrance she began to slow down and Dempsey turned around to see what she was doing. Her eyes were fixed on the door with an expression of foreboding and she was grasping onto her handbag as if it were her only lifeline.

"I'm just going to powder my nose," she said, suddenly speeding up and walking straight past the door.

"Harry!" Dempsey called after her, but she was gone. He shrugged and entered the office.

Makepeace leant on the washbasin with two hands and stared into the mirror above it.

"You are being ridiculous," she said to herself. "Everyone was drunk that night, even Spikings. Oh god, Spikings!" She considered the prospect of facing him. Why did he have to be there that night? Or why couldn't he have just stayed for one or two drinks and then left? "Look, just breeze in there and act as if nothing has happened. Well, nothing really has happened…apart from the fact that I kissed Dempsey in front of all of SI10!" She ran a hand through her hair. "Why? Why? Whatever possessed me to do that?" She suddenly pushed herself away from the mirror. "Oh for goodness sake, stop being such a goose and just get in there! Besides, it would be very unprofessional for anyone to mention that night. Yes, if anyone says anything I shall have to remind them of that." And finally she strolled out into the corridor towards the office again.

She opened the door to the sound of commotion and laughter. Heading straight for her desk, she moved across the room with as much casual grace as she could manage considering that inside she was a mass of tension. Turning her head slightly, she scanned the room and was disturbed to see that one after another of the officers seemed to be looking up at her and following her progress across the room with a strange fascination.

She reached the sanctuary of her desk and slid into her chair, picking up a random report and pretending to study its contents. Okay, why was everybody staring and grinning at her? Dempsey had said that it would all be okay. He had said that he was going to talk to them…make sure it was all okay for her. The bloody thoughtless man had obviously not bothered. Or worse, he'd been talking behind her back, filling them in on the details! That was it! Dempsey was dead meat! Where the hell was he anyway? She glanced around the room and spotted him sat at the other end with his feet up, eating a bowl of cereal.

She flug the report onto her desk, sprung out of her chair and headed for Dempsey. As she approached him he looked up at her with a smile.

"Hiya gorgeous. What's up?"

"A word," she said, moving her eyes towards their desks and away from the other officers.

He shrugged and stood up, taking his cereal bowl and following her. He sat down at his desk, put his feet up and continued to munch on his cornflakes.

She placed her hand over his legs and onto the desk, leaning over him with her other hand on her hip. "It's Sergeant Makepeace to you and I thought that you were going to have a word with that lot," she said under her breath.

Her body language spoke of only angry frustration but at those close quarters Dempsey was suddenly incapable of coherent thought. His eyes were in direct line of the buttons of her white blouse and with her hand placed on her hip the material was stretched across her chest. He could see the outline of her bra, almost imagine what was underneath it as his eyes strained to see further into the material. His gaze travelled up her body to her face and he gave her a guilty smile.

"Sorry?" He wasn't concentrating.

"You will be," she threatened.

He shook his head to clear it. "What's up?"

"You said that you were going to speak to them. Or have you been speaking _with_ them?" She looked at him suspiciously but he simply sat there gazing blankly back at her. He didn't even seem to know what she was talking about. Was his memory that bad? "Dempsey!" she said with exasperation. With rising anger she leant even closer to him and his eyes widened. "If you don't tell me this very minute what has been said, I swear to god…" she stopped there, trying her hardest to control her impatience and annoyance. He knew how she felt about returning to work after the other night. What the bloody hell was wrong with him?

If there was anything sexier than Harry sat so close to him it was Harry when she was angry. He wasn't keeping up. He hadn't a clue what she was talking about so his eyes focused on that incredibly tempting pair of glossy pink lips instead. She was pulling him closer to her like a magnet. He was mesmerized. He didn't even realise that he was slowly moving towards her until she growled with anger and abruptly sprung back, standing up and glowering down at him.

She put her hands on her hips. "Dempsey, if you don't stop looking at me like that you are going to be in more trouble than you could imagine!"

God he hoped so! He sat back in his chair and assessed her with a lazy smile as he continued to eat his cereal.

"Calm down tiger. What am I supposed to have said and to whom?"

"Dempsey! I don't believe what I'm hearing! For the third time now, you were supposed to have a word with the boys about… you know!" she said, reluctant to mention the other night. Suddenly a very disturbing thought hit her. "Has Chas said anything?" she said, glancing around nervously. He looked bewildered and she was finding herself getting more and more worked up the longer he went without answering her.

Now he was really confused. "Look, help me out here a bit. Has Chas said anything about what?" He casually spooned another helping of cereal into his mouth and chewed on it thoughtfully as he watched her. The paranoia grew worse. She faltered. She dreaded to think what had been said and she really didn't relish the thought of verbalising it.

"You sould have stopped him," she accused, pointing the finger of blame at him. Then she laughed bitterly. "But then why would I expect you to? You are probably loving all of this!" She was boardering on hysteria, he had to calm her down.

"Hold your horses!" he said, putting down his bowl, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her to sit in a nearby chair. "What the hell is all this about?" he said, putting his hands around her panic stricken face. She brushed them off and glanced around to see who was looking. Nobody seemed to have noticed, thank god! She leant towards him and spoke under her breath, her eyes glistening with hurt and a look of betrayal. "You've been talking about private things that have happened between us." He was horrified by the look on her face and the tone of her voice. He took her hand and looked at her seriously.

"No! Are you crazy? I wouldn't do that!"

She blinked and seemed a little taken aback. "You wouldn't?"

"No! We've been through this kinda conversation before remember?"

She sighed but still didn't look entirely happy. "Well something must have been said."

"Not to me. Why do you think that anyway?" he asked.

"Well, there's something going on. All the guys were staring at me when I walked in!"

Dempsey watched her for a moment before a grin began to develop across his face. "Harry, I hate to have to be the one to tell you this but there's nothin' going on at all. The guys do that every morning!"

She frowned. "No they don't… do they?"

He chuckled. "Sure they do."

"But why?"

"Well to sum up I'd say, from my perspective at least…" a smile played around his mouth as he uttered those words, "… that they were…" he suddenly realised that he needed to tread carefully here. "…getting their daily fix of… lettin' their imaginations…" No, he'd better not go there. "…indulging themselves in…" She was looking impatient. "Well…the sight of you," he finally finished, grimacing and waiting for her response.

Her faced never changed its expression as she stared at him for a while. Then she huffed.

"Well, I've never noticed that before."

"Maybe that's because you aren't usually quite as paranoid as you are today," he pointed out.

"So, no one has mentioned anything about that night then?" she asked hesitently.

"Well yes…" Her eyes widenend but he quickly continued before the hysteria began again. "… But they haven't mentioned you…or me. They are too busy making fun of Fry." Dempsey laughed. She turned to look across at the guys. "Aparently he went on to a club after the pub and found himself a woman to take home."

Harry's head shot back to him in surprise. "In his state?"

"Well, I think he had a bit of help from the guys," he chuckled.

Harry shook her head in disbelief. "It's a shame the poor woman didn't get any help from her friends. What was she thinking?"

He grinned and she eventually smiled at him.

"No more paranoia from now on then, right?" he asked. She looked a little more appeased and gave a small smile. "Now, Spikings wants to see us," he added. She groaned and watched as Dempsey stood up and headed for Spikings's office. Sighing, she hauled herself out of the chair and reluctantly followed him.

The moment that Harry walked into the office all the vivid memories came floding back in startling clarity. She took a seat and pushed them as firmly as she could to the back of her mind.

Dempsey on the other hand kept the images to the forefront of his mind and ran his eyes over the desk, picturing Harry lying under him, her legs wrapped around his body. Suddenly a playful mood hit him and mischief began to surface itself.

"So glad you made it to work today," Spikings said, looking from one to the other. Harry turned to Dempsey in a panic. He had said that Spikings had told him that they didn't need to go in yesterday!

"I thought…" she began, but then realised that to explain would mean bringing up the subject of that night again.

"Thought what?" Spikings asked.

Oh hell, this was worse than she had imagined.

"Well, Dempsey had mentioned…that is he had said that…"

Dempsey butted in and ended her torment. "We went to see Thomas, like you said boss."

"Hmm." Spikings felt as if he had been coerced into allowing them time off and he didn't like it.

"And?" he was looking at Harry.

"Sir?"

He sighed. "And, what have you found out about the incidents at Rainington Hall? This file is looking decidedly thin," he said holding up the file and throwing it back down on his desk.

"Well that's because there is nothing to put in it," she replied. "We reprimanded the trespasser, he left the premises and that was it."

Dempsey watched Harry with a grin as temptation and mischief took over. "Yeah, that was it boss," Dempsey said, leaning his elbow on the desk and sliding it along. He leant his chin on his hand and turned to look sideways at Harry. She kept her eyes focused on Spikings.

"And nothing unusual was reported when you went there yesterday?"

"No," Dempsey began, keeping his attention on Harry. "I figure that Rainington would be a very hard place to get into. Some things are hard to get into. It would be very frustrating for a trespasser."

Spikings looked quizzically at Dempsey. Harry kept her eyes ahead of her and willed Dempsey to shut up.

"Course any trespasser who really wanted to get in badly would break through the defenses eventually," Dempsey added.

Spikings coughed to draw Dempsey's attention back towards himself. "Lieutenant! Are you trying to say in your odd Yankee way that perhaps the trespasser is trying to break into Rainington?" Dempsey was beginning to annoy him; he didn't seem as if he was focused on the case today. In fact most of the team seemed unfocused that morning. He had been aware of the sound of laughter coming from the outer office for a while now which probably indicated little work being done. He'd have to sort that out. Perhaps it was a mistake to have stayed out for the duration of Fry's birthday celebrations. Perhaps now the team thought that they could take liberties!

Dempsey looked back at Spikings. "No boss, I don't think so. At least we have no evidence to suggest that he tried to break in. But if he is going to, then me and Harry would have some more desk work to do...you know to fill up that file a bit. But you don't mind desk work do you Harry?" he said, grinning back at her. She gritted her teeth and kept her eyes averted from him. "In fact, I think on occasion you secretly quite enjoy it."

"Dempsey!" Spikings barked. "Can we concentrate on the details of the case? I'll ask you once more, did Thomas report anything unusual happening when you visited him yesterday?" Spikings was losing patience and the great peel of laughter from the outer office didn't help.

"No boss," he shook his head. "Nothin'."

Spikings groaned. "Thank you for that!" he said sarcastically, frowning at the sight of Dempsey leaning on his desk and the fact that he didn't seem able to keep Dempsey's attention on him. He brought his fist down on the desk with a thump, making both Harry and Dempsey jump and finally getting Dempsey to turn his head back. "Have I got your attention now lieutenant?"

"Sorry boss," he said, stroking the top of Spikings's desk. "You know you should be careful with this desk, it a good one..."

Harry had had enough and she swung her head towards Dempsey, giving him an angry glare. He ignored her and continued.

"... I'd like a desk like this one. Lots of space to spread out."

"Dempsey," she said through gritted teeth as her glare got fiercer, "Spikings would like us to discuss the case."

"Yes," Spikings said, standing up and pacing the room. "If it's not too much trouble! I want us to go through that file and see what we've missed because Lord Maybrook reported another sighting of the trespasser last night."

This finally got Dempsey's attention for a moment. "You're kiddin' me? I didn't think that kid would go back. Just seemed to be havin' a bit of fun but thought he'd leave Rainington alone after we caught him."

"Apparently not," Spikings replied. "So you two had better put your heads together and come up with a way of finding this 'kid'. There's a reason why he's doing this, we just aren't seeing it."

Dempsey leant towards Harry, grabbed her far shoulder and put his head against hers. She looked sideways at him in shock.

"We're good at puttin' our heads together... that's not all," he whispered in her ear before moving away again.

Spikings looked as if he was about to blow a fuse...and Harry didn't look much calmer.

"Ah come on! That kid ain't plannin' on hurting no one. You gotta agree Harry," he appealed to her. "And if we find him again what can we do? We gotta get Thomas to get a court order and then maybe we can do somethin' but there ain't nothin' we can do before that unless the kid commits a more serious crime."

Spikings frowned at the sound of laughter from outside again. "That may just happen," he said, pointing at Dempsey. The laughter got louder and Spikings snapped, striding through the door to reprimand the noisy officers.

As soon as Spikings could be heard bawling outside Harry turned to address Dempsey. "What the bloody hell was all that about?"

He smiled innocently. "All what about?"

"You know!" she pointed an accusatory finger at him. "And it stops now!"

"C'mon, he doesn't know what I'm talkin' about," he chuckled.

"It's not funny Dempsey! Besides you're just working him up. We have to come up with something on this bloody case," she said, rising suddenly out of her seat and reaching across the desk for the file. In the process she turned to speak to Dempsey again but saw that he was grinning at her like a Cheshire cat and enjoying the sight of her leaning over the desk. In fact, by the look on his face he was letting his imagination run riot. She sprung back suddenly and to her consternation she found her own imagination running away with her. She sat back in the chair and opened the file, holding it up and attempting to hide the blush that was flooding across her face. The file suddenly lowered itself and an amused looking Dempsey appeared above it.

"What ya doin' Harry?" he asked, grinning.

"You know what I'm doing, now move back there," she came back, attempting to pull the file out of his grasp. Dempsey held onto it and watched her face. There was a short silence. "Is there anything else you want?" Harry bit her tongue at the way she had phrased that. This was getting ridiculous! She tried to hide the laughter that was bubbling up inside her. Good god, if she started laughing now she'd only encourage him more!

He went to answer her but seemed to change his mind as another thought hit him. "Hey Harry," he began, letting go of the file at last but moving his chair as close to hers as it would go. She ignored him. He may not have picked up on her last comment but knowing him as she did, she was certain that he was going to make the most of the fact that Spikings had left the room. "Harry," he called.

"What!" A small laugh slipped out of her and he grinned.

He leant sideways to speak to her in a hushed voice. "Imagine if Chas hadn't come back here for Spikings's whiskey," his grin grew. "That really would give you somethin' to blush about!"

She gave up, left the file on her lap and covered her face with her hands. "Stop it, stop it, stop it, stop it, stop it!" She didn't know whether she was closer to hysteria or hilarity.

He laughed but then put an arm around her shoulder, feeling a little sorry for her. "Okay, I'll quit it. In fact I'll not mention another word about it again. But I just have one more thing to say. You won't have to be a detective to figure out what I'll be thinkin' of every time I walk into this office!"


	35. Chapter 35

Spikings stormed back into his office to face the sight of Dempsey sat next to Makepeace with his arm around her, whispering into her ear.

"Where's that damn file?" he bellowed. He'd had enough of officers who couldn't focus on their work, and this case was beginning to get on his nerves. Someone was targeting Thomas for a more serious personal reason than it seemed, he was sure of it, but these two didn't seem to be giving him anything to go on. He needed this case dealt with and out of the way or soon he wouldn't be able to justify keeping Dempsey and Makepeace working on it. And yet he felt a certain obligation towards Thomas to see this thing through. These two however seemed to be more focused on each other, and on SI10 time that was unacceptable. Time for him to let them know that.

"Here Sir," Makepeace said, standing, turning around and holding the file up. "Dempsey and I would like to return to Rainington, speak to the staff and Thomas again and search the grounds. We believe that there may be a connection between the trespasser and Thomas."

"Hmm." Spikings narrowed his eyes and looked from Makepeace to Dempsey. That had taken the wind out of his sails somewhat; they'd actually been discussing the case. "You do that," he pointed from one to the other, "and find me something!"

Dempsey and Makepeace turned to leave.

"Oh and one more thing," Spikings said before they left. Dempsey and Makepeace halted at the door and turned. "It hasn't gone unnoticed that there have been certain developments between certain officers in SI10 recently." Makepeace tried her hardest, but failed, not to blush. "Just make sure that these developments don't interfere with SI10 work or certain officers will find themselves working independently of one another, am I making myself clear?"

Neither of them quite knew how to reply and glanced sheepishly at each other. Makepeace took a breath as if to say something but then changed her mind, turned and swiftly followed Dempsey out of the door.

"I'll get you back for that Dempsey, just you see if I don't!" Makepeace said as they rushed down the corridor.

Dempsey grinned. "I can't wait!"

Thomas seemed frail and shaken when Dempsey and Makepeace returned to Rainington to speak to him. He had said that he'd heard noises again and seen lights outside his bedroom window. After reassuring him that they would not stop until this matter was dealt with, they questioned the rest of the staff who unfortunately appeared to have seen and heard nothing, apart from Bessie that is who was convinced that she had seen someone in the garden.

"Time we checked out the garden again," Dempsey said to Makepeace, heading for the patio doors. "He came back for a reason."

They paced the garden, looking up at the house and Thomas's bedroom window.

"Why does he keep coming back?" Makepeace pondered, putting a thoughtful hand to her mouth. "And it's not as if he's really committed any serious crime." Makepeace's eyes caught Dempsey's and as they stood there a strange look flickered across each of their faces. Had he thought the same? Had she suspected that too? He'd been thinking it for a while but then there was no real reason for _him_ to have thought that, let alone her.

"What you thinkin'?" he asked, just to be certain.

Her eyes flicked away from his. She seemed uncertain. But then she was staring at the ground, her eyes attracted to something in the grass. She took a few steps forward and stooped to pick up an object.

Dempsey peered over her shoulder as she stood up. "What you found?"

"A key. A hotel room key," she corrected, turning the object over in her hand. Dempsey was itching to take a closer look. "Room 21, Melbourne Place Hotel, Kings Cross," she read, a look of realisation dawning over her face. He grinned back. Damn it, they were good! "Well, something for us to check out," she smiled, sure that he had thought the same about the key.

They left Rainington in a rush, keen to check out the hotel.

"He probably came back last night for the key didn't he?" Makepeace said as she got into the car.

"Maybe, but he could have got a new key," Dempsey replied. "Why'd he have to go to all that trouble?"

"There might have been a charge for a replacement key... or maybe he thought that someone would find it," she suggested.

"Or maybe he just couldn't resist goin' back there. You think he's workin' himself up to see Thomas?" Dempsey asked, pulling out onto the main road.

"There are better ways of paying him a visit than creeping around his garden and scaring him half to death!"

"That's what's been buggin' me, why'd he keep goin' back?"

"Or why did he go there in the first place? Well, maybe we will get to ask him ourselves."

"If he's still there," Dempsey pointed out.


	36. Chapter 36

After a frustrating drive through central London traffic, being directed wrongly and having to ask in several shops along the way, they eventually found Melbourne Place Hotel, an old dark and dreary looking guest house down a side road. They entered into a long, high ceilinged hallway with a dark red patterned carpet and a small desk like reception area at the side next to one wall. A middle aged balding man was sitting behind the desk and he looked up at them as they approached him.

Dempsey and Makepeace held up their badges and identified themselves before showing the man the key they had found and enquiring about the occupant of the room. The man rolled his eyes, he didn't want trouble, and explained that the youth had argued with him about losing the key and he had eventually handed him a replacement. Makepeace asked if he wouldn't mind if they took a look around the room. The man sighed, nodded and pointed them in the right direction up a set of winding stairs.

The room was a shambles with clothes strewn all over the floor and takeaway cartons at the side of the bed. Makepeace took one look around and grinned.

"Hmm, not unlike your place. Must be a habit with the colonists."

He narrowed his eyes at her and began to search the room. "Shame you Brits couldn't hold on to the colonies. Bit off more than you could chew I guess eh?"

She picked up a decidedly grubby looking sweatshirt off the bed with two fingers and threw him a look over her shoulder before dropping it back and searching on the bedside table.

"Got it!" Dempsey announced, pulling a passport out of the side pocket of a rucksack on the floor. "What d'ya know, it's Australian."

"Must have been born there," Makepeace commented.

Dempsey opened the passport and read the name inside, "Jack Riley Williams. Williams?" He turned to Makepeace.

"There could be a number of reasons why he has that surname," she screwed up her face, "it's complicated."

"Oh." He'd take her word for it. "So it's him then? Who we thought he was?" Dempsey questioned.

"What do _you_ think?" It seemed obvious to her.

The sound of the telephone startled them both then and Makepeace paused for just a second before reaching for the receiver and picking it up. She listened for a few moments before thanking the caller and hanging up.

"Jack is on his way up," she informed Dempsey.

Dempsey turned the light off and they both moved to the space behind the door.

Jack opened the door and turned on the light. Dempsey waited until he had fully entered the room before slamming the door shut, leaning against it and holding up the passport with one hand.

"Hiya Jack, you wanna tell us why you've been hangin' round your grandpa's house?"

Jack looked from Dempsey to Makepeace and frowned. "Dunno what you mean," he shrugged scanning the room.

"Sure, but you might wanna start comprehendin' real quick 'cause we're just on our way back to pay you're grandpa another visit. You know, to tell him all about the guy who's been in his garden, playin' tricks on the old man's mind. Why d'ya do it Jack? He's ya grandpa damn it! He's a dyin' man! What kinda piece of scum does that to his own grandpa?"

Jack pointed a finger at Dempsey. "You don't know nothin' about it! I'm bein' victimised here. You've broken into my room and been snooping through my gear!" he exclaimed.

"Ahh, he don't like it when someone aint respectin' his privacy," Dempsey said to Makepeace. He turned back to Jack. "Should've thought about that when you were 'snoopin' round your grandpa's garden. How d'ya think he'd feel to know it was his own flesh 'n blood eh?

"I dropped my key there, all right!" he came back defensively. "I was gonna stay away after that."

"Why were you in the garden in the first place?" Makepeace asked.

Bloody hell, this whole idea was a mistake! Jack had known it from the start. But then why should they be allowed to get away with it? They were treating his grandfather worse than his father and he were. They had a right to try to stop them! But now the Fuzz were involved, damn it! This wasn't part of the deal! He wanted out. He also realised suddenly that he didn't want his grandfather to know that it had been him in the garden and that complicated things because it meant that he couldn't just walk away, he had to come up with an explanation for these two before they went back to Rainington.

"I just wanted to see him. Never seen him before, that's all. But he wasn't gonna let me see him anyway 'cause he's cut us off. Him and me old man's been fighting and Dad said he'd never let me into the place so I thought I'd just go there for a look...see if I could get a quick look through the window." The words came out in a garbled rush. He seemed defensive and Dempsey suspected that he'd already practised his explanation after their last encounter. There was more to it than that but Dempsey believed that he'd only gone back for the key, he had been surprised when Spikings had told him that the trespasser had returned. He'd always had a hunch that this youngster didn't really mean Thomas any harm, even more so now that he knew they were related and that it seemed as if he didn't want his grandfather to think badly of him. Dempsey didn't particularly like this guy's attitude, and he didn't fully trust him, but if he was Thomas's grandson and there was a chance that something could be resolved before it was too late for Thomas then he'd help out all he could.

"Really?" Dempsey began. Jack had backed himself into a corner now. "Well if that's the case then let me speak to him. I think I can talk him into meeting with you. I'll take you there and then it'll be all above board eh?" Dempsey said.

Jack looked surprised at the thought of it. He'd never planned on meeting with his grandfather, but what surprised him more was that he actually found himself wanting to.

"I dunno," he said, looking at Dempsey suspiciously.

"Tell ya what," Dempsey took a card out of his pocket and handed it to Jack. "I'll talk with him first and you think about it. But ya go back there sneakin' around again and were gonna have to enforce that court order."

Jack glanced at the card. "Yeah, yeah, I got it."

"Make sure you have!" Dempsey replied before they left.


	37. Chapter 37

"I'm goin' back to see Thomas," Dempsey announced as they got into the car.

"Dempsey, Spikings will want us back at SI10," Makepeace warned.

"I'll drop you back there and you can fill him in. As far as I'm concerned I'm makin' sure Thomas is okay and tying up loose ends."

It was an excuse really. There was nothing more for SI10 to do there and Dempsey was making this a more personal matter but okay, his heart was in the right place and there wasn't a lot to do in the office anyway. She'd cover for him and call him back if he was needed.

She had been right in her first assumption, there was very little to do at the office beyond monotonous paperwork, and knowing Dempsey's views on that she was glad he was elsewhere. Having said that though she did expect him to at least put in an appearance later on. Before she left to go home Spikings had made some comment about finding out what that that 'elusive partner of hers had been up to all day' and she'd nodded, thinking it best not to comment.

By the time she arrived home Harry felt quite weary, probably due to the previous night when they had stayed up late. She'd thought about phoning Dempsey straight away to find out how Thomas had reacted to the idea of a meeting with Jack but she was cold and a hot relaxing bath was calling her. She'd phone him immediately afterwards.

Filling the bath with lots of her favourite scented bubble bath and running the hot tap on full, she undressed and dipped her foot in the water. She cringed slightly and added some more cold water before eventually turning off both taps and sliding gratefully underneath the bubbles. After spending a few moments simply enjoying the bliss of first entering the bath she reached out for her walkman, which she'd left on the side, placed the headphones in her ears and pressed play. It had become a habit of hers recently to listen to classical music whilst bathing. She thought it a bit of an indulgence and she tended to spend a lot longer in the bath because of it, topping up the hot water when the temperature began to drop, but it was the one thing she always looked forward to when the working day neared its end.

Dempsey gave up on ringing Harry's doorbell and banged his fist on the door loudly. Still no answer. And yet she had to be in there, her car was in the driveway and the lights were on. He ran back to his car and went into the glove box to find Harry's spare set of keys. Letting himself into her house he called out for her but still got no reply. What the hell was she doing? He searched the downstairs rooms first but as she didn't appear to be in any of them he made his way upstairs.

As soon as he reached the top of the stairs he heard the slight movement of water and noticed the bathroom door half open with steam seeping out from behind it. He grinned but wondered why she hadn't heard him call her.

"Harry," he called out again, sure that she would have to have heard him that time. Still no reply.

He reached the bathroom door and peered through the gap. Well, she hadn't answered him and besides, he grinned, it's not as if she hadn't done the same to him when he was in the shower. She had her head resting backwards against the bath and her arms stretched along its sides. The skin of her arms glistened with a thin coating of water. Then he noticed her head moving slightly from side to side every now and then and saw the leads of her headphones, realising now why she hadn't heard him. He chuckled to himself. She really did enjoy her baths didn't she. He wouldn't mind enjoying one with her. He moved a little to get a better view but saw to his consternation that she was completely covered with bubbles. Just his luck! She moved then and sat up slightly to reach for the soap. His eyes widened and strained to see more but she sat backwards before revealing any more than just her shoulders and upper back. Damn! He knocked loudly on the bathroom door then, impatient with waiting. She jumped and whipped off her headphones, almost dropping them in the water.

"Harry, it's Dempsey. I've been banging on your front door for…twenty minutes," he lied.

She slid further into the bubbles. "Oh, err, I was… I didn't hear you. Must have been the noise of the running water." She hid her walkman under a towel.

"Yeah well thought I'd fill you in on the Thomas situation."

"How did it go?"

"Not bad, I managed to convince him to meet with Jack. I think he is quite lookin' forward to it."

"Well done Dempsey."

He grinned. "So what do I get for a reward then?"

"A pat on the back," she laughed.

"How 'bout a corner of the bath?" he asked.

She smiled. "You can have the whole bath when I'm out of it."

"Ahh, where's the fun in that?" he came back.

"Sorry Dempsey, there's only room for one."

"I bet I could squeeze in there with you Harry."

"I bet you could but bath time is my one luxury and I don't intend to share it with anyone."

He looked surprised. "What, you never shared a bath with no one?"

"Well, I didn't say that, but this is my after work distress bath," she explained.

He laughed. "Bloody hell how many baths do you have a day?"

She smiled. "As many as I can fit into my busy schedule."

"You must be the cleanest woman on earth!" he laughed.

"You know what they say, 'cleanliness is close to godliness.'"

"Well Aphrodite, how about I come in there and scrub all of your hard to reach places?" He waited expectantly for a reply.

"I'm an expert bath taker remember? I'm well trained in reaching all those places," she chuckled.

Hmm, this was getting' tricky. "You know a bath is a very dangerous place," he went on, "one sudden move and you could slip, sink right under the water and drown to death. Now we don't want that do we?"

She grinned. "No Dempsey." She replied innocently.

His face lit up. "Right, so I should come in there just in case then. I could be your bath bodyguard. I'd be good at that."

"Hmm, I can imagine."

Well that was a good enough invitation for him. He grabbed hold of the side of the door and jumped around it into the room. Her head shot up in surprise. She hadn't really expected him to actually come in!

He strolled up to the bath and she watched him expectantly. Then he noticed a wicker chair in the corner and pulled it up to the side of the bath, taking a seat on it. He gazed at her with a slight smile on his face and she suddenly became acutely aware of her nakedness under the bubbles. She felt a blush creep into her cheeks and glanced downwards quickly, just to check that the bubbles were still there!

"Don't worry, I haven't seen anything…yet," he grinned. "Looking a bit hot and flustered there Harry," he said, noticing her deepening colour.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "The water's very hot."

"Yeah? Let's see," he said dipping his hand into the far end of the bath. She panicked and sat forward, ready to fend off his hand. He laughed and widened his eyes, pretending that she'd revealed herself by sitting up. She looked down, dreading what she would see but found herself still covered by the bubbles. Growling at him she lay back again and he contented himself with tweaking her toes before removing his hand from the water.

"Hilarious Dempsey, but no funny business before our date remember? You promised."

"I did?" Damn it! Why couldn't they just go to bed and have the date afterwards? Okay, so she'd never go for it. "So tomorrow is the beginning of the weekend then," he smiled with the realisation of it. "So tomorrow seems like a good time to have a date."

"Seems to be," she agreed.

He leant forward and spoke under his breath. "Just you wait until after that date Harry, I'll be like a man unleashed."

She acknowledged his statement with an amused grin. He gazed back at her, playing over several different 'him and Harry' scenarios in his head. Moments passed in silence and she wondered what he'd say or do next. Finally he spoke.

"Don't mind me, just pretend I'm not here."

She thought about that and suddenly an idea hit her. What if she did just that? Pretended that he wasn't there. How would he react? He'd just acknowledged that they weren't going to do anything before the date so he was stuck. She could take advantage of that; get her revenge for the outrageous comments he'd made in the office in front of Spikings. But dare she go ahead with it? She'd try it and see.

"All right," she shrugged, picking up the soap again. He looked surprised by her answer and watched with fascination as she began to soap herself. First her arms and shoulders. Her eyes quickly flicked to him and she saw his fascination. It was working so far so she lifted one leg out of the water and reached forward to soap it, letting her hands run slowly up and down its length. His eyes followed the movements of her hands in a trance like way. Damn it, she had gorgeous legs! She replaced that leg into the water and repeated the process with the other one. Yes, that one was just as gorgeous too. He felt frustration rise within him and when she began to soap her shoulders and back he took the opportunity to slip one hand into the water again and find her ankle. From there he ran his hand up the smooth curve of her calf until she moved her leg away and protested.

"No funny business remember?"

He groaned and sat back on the chair. Satisfied, she began to soap underneath the water, moving lower to where he assumed her breasts would be. His eyes widened and his heart rate doubled.

"You enjoyin' that?" he asked.

"Shh, your not supposed to be here. How can I enjoy my bath if you keep interrupting me?" she chastised.

He grinned. "You're right, you go ahead and enjoy."

She began soaping again and he watched, a smile playing around his lips. His eyes tried their hardest to see through the bubbles, imagining what her hand was doing, but he couldn't even see so much as an inch of her skin underneath. Then he noticed her hand move lower still and she closed her eyes.

"Hmm, that feels good," she sighed.

Where the hell was her hand now!? She bit her lip and kept her hand in the same spot.

His eyes widened and he was mesmerised by the area where he judged her hand was under the bubbles. She sighed again and leant her head against the back of the bath. Then she gave a small moan and he couldn't keep quiet any longer.

"God damn it Harry, are you really doin' that?"

She looked up suddenly as though she had forgotten that he was there. Then a slow smile crept across her face.

"I guess you'll never know," she said, "But since you can't see I could always get away with it."

She had contemplated actually touching herself just as a dare but then she was finding herself becoming quite aroused as it was, the last thing she needed was more temptation. Still, he didn't have to know that. She'd convince him that it was real whilst putting doubts in his head at the same time. Yes, that would be a fair enough revenge.

She leant her head back again and closed her eyes. He could see slight movements under the water where her hand must have been.

"You really know how to torture a guy don't you?" he laughed.

She stopped and lifted her head. "You're right, I suppose I'm being unfair." She lifted her hand out of the water.

He looked panicked. "No, no, torture me some more, please!"

He wondered how far she'd go and was bursting with excitement at the thought that she'd push herself to the limit in front of him.

She closed her eyes again and moved her hand back under the water. She pressed her lips together and bit her lip again. He watched her face, enthralled by her every expression. Her eyes fluttered open and she focused at one spot on the ceiling, feigning a look of concentration. Then her eyes slowly closed and she exhaled softly. Bloody hell, how far was she? Her eyes fluttered open and closed and her breathing quickened. He grasped onto the edge of the bath. It was all he could to stop himself from jumping into the bath with her, promise or no promise.

He was just about to beg her to let him finish the job when the sound of the telephone ringing downstairs made her jump and lift her head. Damn it no! Fate was conspiring against him!

"Will you answer that for me Dempsey? I'm a bit busy at the moment."

"Ah, you're kiddin' me Harry! Tell me you're kiddin'. There is no phone. You're hearin' things. It's probably a phone next door or somethin'," he babbled desperately.

"No Dempsey, it could be important," she insisted. It couldn't have come at a better time.

He looked utterly torn and stood up, thinking that it probably wasn't important and if he rushed back upstairs he may not miss much.

"Okay, I'll go." He said, rushing to the door, but looking around at her before he left. "Don't do nothin' Harry till I'm back, okay?"

"Hurry up Dempsey," she called as he left the room. She chuckled to herself. Well he had pushed his luck in the office. Grabbing a towel quickly, she got out of the bath.


	38. Chapter 38

Dempsey slammed the phone down and sprinted back upstairs to the bathroom. To his consternation though he found it empty and moments later Harry strolled out of her bedroom wrapped in a bathrobe.

"You got out," he said, stating the obvious.

"Yes, Dempsey, very observant of you," she said over her shoulder as she passed him and descended the stairs.

"But, I thought..." he began, following her.

"Thought what Dempsey?" She reached the hallway, making her way into the lounge and through to the kitchen.

"Oh nothin'," he sighed.

"So who was on the phone then?" she asked, flicking the kettle on.

"Spikings. Jack has been in touch, he wants to meet with Thomas tonight. I'm gonna take him there but I shouldn't be too long. What d'ya say I come back here after...to fill you in and all. I could pick up a takeout on the way back," he suggested.

She looked surprised. He seemed to want to spend most evenings with her recently and she couldn't deny that she was flattered and warmed by the thought.

"Shouldn't I be coming with you?" she asked. She'd become a little confused lately as to whether this case was finished or not, and if she should be accompanying him on his trips to and from Rainington. But then again, he seemed to have taken more of a personal interest in Thomas and his grandson more than anything else and Jack appeared to no longer pose a threat.

"Nah, you aint exactly dressed for it," he smiled, looking her up and down as he approached her, "and I gotta go now to meet Jack." He slipped his arms around her waist, feeling the satin of the robe sliding over the curves underneath. She placed her hands on his arms. "You wait here for me... and don't be gettin' up to anythin' else while I'm gone," he grinned. Her expression was one of mock innocence. "We gotta plan our date tomorrow night too."

"Yes, I suppose we have," she smiled.

He searched her eyes and a smile hovered about his lips. "You enjoy that bath of yours Harry?"

She smiled politely. "Hmm, it was nice and relaxing."

He grinned. "Just how relaxed did you get?"

"Dempsey you weren't supposed to be there, remember?

"Yeah, but that's just the problem though, I do remember! You got my mind workin' overtime!"

"Hadn't you better be going?" she said, removing his arms from her waist, turning him around and ushering him towards the hallway.

"Ah, c'mon Harry, you gotta tell me...did you?" he said, trying to turn around to face her.

She turned him back to the hallway and pushed him towards the door. "You'll be late for Jack."

"You could have done it, 'cause like you said, I'd never know," he calculated.

"Give my regards to Thomas," she said, reaching around him to open the front door.

He walked out of the door and turned on the doorstep. He searched her face thoughtfully, as if looking for some kind of clues.

"Nah," he said, eventually, "you were just teasin' me all the time. You aint foolin' me."

"I wouldn't dream of it," she smiled.

He narrowed his eyes at her. "Well, you know it don't matter anyway 'cause I'm chosin' to believe that you did."

"See you later Dempsey," she said, finally closing the door.

He stood, staring at it for a while. "She did. If I choose to think that she did then she did... Maybe she really did... Or did she?" He growled and abruptly turned away from the door to descend the steps. "I aint ever gonna sleep again till I find out! And don't she just know it!" he exclaimed.

*********************************************

Dempsey left Jack downstairs under the watchful eye of Bessie while he popped upstairs to see Thomas and ensure that he was prepared for a visit from Jack. He was surprised to see that Thomas was in good spirits and seemed keen to meet his grandson, but he assured him that he'd be waiting outside if he needed him.

After Jack had been seen into Thomas's room, Dempsey left them to talk and took a seat on a chair in the corridor. He wondered what they would talk about and hoped that they would broach the subject of Jack's father so that at least Thomas could put to rest some of the issues that had troubled him so much; or if nothing else he'd get to meet family that he'd never seen before. Time passed and all was quiet in the room. He was pleased that they were obviously taking time to talk things through.

After nearly an hour however he began to wonder how much longer they would be, or if he should put his head around the door just to check if everything was all right. He decided against that though as he didn't really want to interrupt them. His mind wandered then to Harry again and he hoped that she wouldn't get tired of waiting for him and go to bed. He looked at his watch. Nah, it wasn't that late.

After a further twenty minutes he was just checking his watch yet again when he heard footsteps on the stairs and Bessie appeared.

"Well look at you sat there for all this time on that uncomfortable chair! I have left a pot of fresh coffee and a few of my home baked savouries on a tray in the lounge for you. You'll be much more comfortable on the sofa I'm sure," she said to Dempsey.

"They've been in there a while now, they'll probably be comin' out soon," he replied.

"Hmm, they have a lot to talk about I suppose. I'm going to be up here for a while now anyway so I'll let you know when the lad comes out," she assured him.

Okay, he'd go and drink some coffee and then if Jack wasn't out by then he'd look in on them.

"Thanks," he smiled, passing Bessie and descending the stairs.

Dempsey poured himself a coffee and tasted a few of the small pastries that Bessie had left for him before making himself comfortable on the sofa. He waited for a further fifteen minutes but then his patience began to wear a little thin so he put down his coffee cup and headed back up the stairs to see how they were doing.

He knocked at Thomas's door but heard no answer so he let himself into the room. To his surprise he found that Thomas was alone and dozing in his bed.

"Thomas," he called, "you okay?"

Thomas stirred and opened his eyes, smiling. "Hello there. I didn't know you were still here."

Dempsey approached his bed. "Sure. Where's Jack?" he asked.

"He left. He's not such a bad young man. Has a bit of my Vanessa in him i think, I could see it in his eyes."

"So it went well then?"

"We talked a lot, it wasn't easy but," he smiled, "yes, yes it went well. Thank you Jim. You're a good man," he said, patting him on his hand.

"No problem Pops. Listen, I gotta go now but how 'bout I come back tomorrow? You gotta let me beat you at cards sometime!"

Thomas chuckled. "You never know your luck Jim."

Dempsey smiled. "It's a deal then. See you tomorrow. Night Pops," he said leaving the room and going in search of Bessie.

He didn't have to look far as he bumped into her outside Thomas's door.

"Ah, I thought I'd lost you there for a minute," she laughed. "I was just coming to tell you that the lad has left."

"I was gonna talk to him before he went," Dempsey frowned, a little annoyed that she hadn't come to tell him Jack was leaving.

"He rushed off I'm afraid," she said, following Dempsey back down the stairs. "He seemed a tad angry. I hope that he hasn't upset our Thomas."

Dempsey turned then to look back at her. "Angry? But Thomas said that the conversation went well."

"Oh," she looked surprised. "Perhaps he didn't want to worry you."

Something wasn't quite right. Bessie escorted Dempsey to the front door and he turned to speak to her before he left.

"If Thomas needs me or if there's any more problems telephone right away, okay? Thomas has the number and you too, yes?"

"Of course. Thank you so much for all your help. Goodnight Lieutenant," she said, closing the door behind him.


	39. Chapter 39

Dempsey pulled up in Harry's driveway, jumped out of his car and ran up the steps to her house. He rang the doorbell and prayed that she was still up. She opened the door with a smile and he was surprised to see that she had dressed. He'd have kind of preferred it if she was still in that robe of hers but he was relieved that she hadn't got fed up waiting for him.

"Takeout. You like Italian, right?" he said, holding up the bag.

"Italian will do just fine." She smiled and stepped aside so that he could enter.

He walked through the door and closed it behind him before quickly placing the bag on a table in the hallway and grabbing her by the arm as she went to walk into the lounge. She turned in surprise and found herself being pulled suddenly into Dempsey's arms.

"Hey? Are you okay?" she laughed, looking taken aback.

"I am now," he said, slipping his hands into her hair and bending to kiss her softly on the lips. She melted against him and tingled with the warm feel of his mouth on hers. He ran his hands over her shoulders and down her back, pulling her more firmly against him. He could feel the curves of her body pressed to his and he craved more intimate contact, he ached for it. She found herself enveloped by him, by his arms and hands and shoulders and the hardness of his chest... and then there was his mouth, soft and sensual, coaxing a reaction from her. Not that she needed much coaxing, she was rapidly losing herself with him.

She tore her mouth abruptly away and he didn't stop her, although his arms remained around her body. She laughed, but the sound was shaky and her breathing erratic.

"Good grief, what a greeting! Don't you think we should move out of the hallway now?"

"In a minute," he replied, reluctant to let her go just yet. He studied her face for a few long moments and then sighed. "You look great Harry, as always," he said, dipping his head to nudge aside her hair and tease the skin of her neck with his lips. She laughed again, a little perplexed by all the attention she was receiving from him suddenly.

"I take it that the meeting went well then."

"Hmmm," he murmured against her skin, but the sound was more like an appreciation of her neck than a confirmation about the meeting. He wasn't listening. In the car on the way home he'd given some thought about the strange events at Rainington but then he'd focused on getting back quickly to Harry and now that he was there with her, and she felt and tasted so incredibly good, Rainington was far from his mind.

She was beginning to sink into that hazy, tingling state again. "So is Jack going to see Thomas in the future?" she asked, her voice slightly breathless and high pitched as her head unconsciously tilted to one side, giving him better access to her neck.

"Hmmm."

The same answer as before. He wasn't answering her at all and if she didn't stop him soon they'd end up on the floor in the hallway!

"Dempsey?" she said loudly, pushing at his chest and panting for breath.

He looked bewildered. "What?"

"Thomas? Jack?" She was finding it hard to concentrate herself.

His eyes moved dreamily all over her face and when he spoke it was if he didn't have a clue what he was saying.

"Oh yeah, Thomas and...Jack."

She ran an unsteady hand through her hair and he watched the action, fascinated by it.

"So?" It was the only word she could come up with, she'd actually forgotten her original question.

"So?" He wasn't following either.

He moved to kiss her again but this time she halted him. "Come on Dempsey," she appealed, "tell me what happened."

He sighed and linked his arms more loosely behind her back, but continued to gaze at her rather than answering her question.

"You ever think that it gets in the way?" he said suddenly.

"What?" she asked, confused.

"I dunno...work I guess."

"Gets in the way of what?" she asked.

"This for a start...and us...and other things...life," he finished.

She gave a small laugh. "People have to work Dempsey."

"Yeah, I know. But I mean our kinda work."

"But you love police work, you thrive off it," she pointed out.

"Yeah." He didn't sound so sure though. "But it takes over a lot don't it? Then one day you wake up and you realise that's all you got."

She frowned.

"Well, it aint now," he said, noticing the look on her face. "That's what I'm tryin' to say. But it could be...if we...if I," he corrected, "don't change somethin'."

She wasn't entirely sure what he was talking about. "Dempsey, what are you trying to say?"

He sighed again. "I'm just sayin' that I don't know no more if it's worth it, the job and all."

She shook her head. "If it's worth what?"

"A lot of things. This case for a start. This aint a proper case. You and I both know that it aint SI10 work, but I'm happy to do it 'cause first it don't put you, or me," he added, "in the line of fire, and second, I get to help Thomas...hell, even Jack. At least he aint a real piece of scum like we deal with most of the time." He thought for a moment. "Maybe now I feel like you said how you felt, maybe I'm just sick of dealin' with all the scum bags out there."

"But I said that and I left, and then you persuaded me to come back again!"

"I know," he admitted, "but things were different then."

"How?" she asked.

"You hadn't been shot for a start!" he exclaimed. "And we weren't...well, you know... we weren't...together then," he finished hesitantly.

"No," she admitted quietly, wondering where this was going.

"No, so I had no right to suggest this then, did I?"

She stared at him. "Suggest what?"

He looked a bit uncomfortable for a while but then when he spoke it was with renewed energy. "Well, I sure as hell can't give up the force and leave you there can I?"

Her eyes widened. "You're giving up the force?"

"Well, I'm thinkin' 'bout it," he said more quietly. "But there aint no question about it, if we do it we have to do it together. We both have to leave."

She frowned. "This isn't like you Dempsey. Why do you want us both to leave?"

He hesitated and searched her face before speaking. "'Cause we're together now and it's taken so long for us to get this far, if one of us got real hurt 'cause of the job... well it don't bear thinkin' about."

Her expression softened and she reached out to touch his face in an affectionate gesture. "You're right we should seriously consider it but you need to think about what work you would do instead."

He smiled, thrilled that she was agreeing with him. "I'll think of somethin'," he assured her.

She smiled back. "Right, can we move from the front door now? The food must be getting cold and I'll be getting cold soon too!"

He tightened his arms around her and lifted her off the floor slightly, looking up at her. "You feel real hot to me!"

She laughed. "Put me down silly."

He chuckled and loosened his hold. She slid to the floor.

Harry took the takeaway bag into the kitchen and transferred the food onto two plates while Dempsey opened a bottle of wine and laid the table for them. They sat opposite each other and enjoyed the meal and wine. Harry was fairly quiet, she couldn't help but think about their conversation in the hallway and she found herself daydreaming in a way that she never normally did. Perhaps before she hadn't allowed herself to daydream about herself and Dempsey but now for some reason she couldn't stop it. Dempsey was doing a little daydreaming of his own and her apparent reverie gave him the opportunity to simply gaze at her every now and then. He had become fascinated with watching the way she did things. The way she arranged the food on her plate, the way she held her knife and fork so daintily, how she sipped her wine and looked up suddenly at him when she realised that he was watching her. He smiled and began a conversation again until she drifted off into her own world and the whole process was repeated.

She finally placed her cutlery on the plate and looked across at him to see that he had hardly eaten a thing.

"Good grief, what's wrong? I've never seen you not enjoy your food before," she commented.

He put down his fork and dragged his chair over to her. "I aint really hungry. I got other things on my mind," he grinned.

Her eyes widened and she contemplated him to see if he was referring to what she thought he was. By the expression in his eyes, he was. Her heart did a little leap in her chest and there was a silence as they both just gazed at each other. He suddenly leant forward and whispered into her ear.

"I want to make love to you so much my whole body is aching for it." Her heart did much more then just a leap then. He took her hand. "I know we're gonna go on a date tomorrow but Harry... how 'bout we say that we're datin' now?"

She realised the implication of that and to her surprise she found that she was immensely excited about it.

She grinned. "Dempsey..."

The telephone suddenly rang then, cutting into her reply and Dempsey cursed loudly.

"I don't damn well believe it! Don't answer it."

She considered that but she wouldn't be able to relax if she didn't so she told him so and rose off her chair to answer the phone.

"Right Sir, we'll be there right away!"

She put down the receiver and ran across the room to find her bag and keys. "That was Spikings. Thomas phoned and he sounded extremely distressed. He said that someone has been attacked at Rainington!"


	40. Chapter 40

Dempsey and Makepeace screeched to a halt in the driveway of Rainington Hall and ran to the front door. Makepeace rang the doorbell but seconds later Dempsey was pounding on the door.

"Open up!" he shouted. "Police!"

There was no answer.

"The best way in is through the patio doors around the back," Makepeace pointed out, rushing around the side of the house.

They could see very little through the glass of the patio doors as the lights within were quite dim. Makepeace rattled the doors and shouted out for Thomas or Bessie but Dempsey had run out of patience and pulled her aside before breaking the glass and opening the doors from the inside. They stepped over the broken glass and entered the hall, shouting out again, but they were faced with complete silence.

"I'll check for Thomas, you check down here," Dempsey said to Makepeace as he bolted up the stairs.

Makepeace headed for the lounge first and swung the door open to find the room empty and nothing seemingly out of place. She then rushed from room to room downstairs, looking for any evidence of life but each room she entered was empty and silent, all she could hear were the distant shouts from Dempsey upstairs. As she came out of the last room she noticed a small set of steps running to what she presumed was some kind of basement area, and she wondered if it was worth checking down there. Someone had to be in the house! She paused at the first step and peered down into the shadows below. She was just about to descend when the lights in the hall flicked and send her into momentary darkness. She stilled and glanced back into the hall. Maybe that was a not unusual, for the lights to flicker, after all it was an old house. Nevertheless, she gave up on the basement and decided to find Dempsey, and see who was upstairs.

She turned and made for the main staircase.

"Dempsey!" she called out. "Have you found him?"

Silence. She reached the top of the stairs and turned towards Thomas's room, which she remembered being the first room on the left. Before she reached it however the lights flickered again and she stopped, looking up at the ceiling and waiting for the lights to return to normal. The flickering stopped for a moment and she went to move but seconds later the lights dimmed and finally cut out completely.

"Dempsey!" she called out again, straining to make out her surroundings through the darkness. Up until that point she had managed to rationalise her anxiety but considering that she could now barely see her hand in front of her, the house seemed to be mysteriously deserted and she didn't even know where Dempsey was anymore, she reached into her handbag and felt for her gun.

The next moment she heard the loud slamming of a door behind her and she swung around towards the noise, holding her gun close to her. She was further confused and disorientated by the sound of footsteps coming from the direction from which she had just turned and the voice behind made her gasp and swing back again.

"I can't find him Harry."

She breathed a sigh of relief and lowered her gun when she saw Dempsey appear from the distant gloom.

"Have you seen anyone at all?" she asked. "There's no one downstairs."

"I've looked through a few rooms but there's so many damn doors and stairwells! I aint seen no one yet."

"But there should be a few people here, if only the basic staff! Have you noticed that? The only people we have ever seen here are Thomas and Bessie. It doesn't make sense."

"Somethin' obviously aint right all round. And what's with the lights?"

"There has to be someone in here and Thomas can't have gone far. I don't think I'm wrong in assuming that the lights have been cut off purposely."

"Let's stick together and carry on lookin'," Dempsey said, grabbing her arm and edging back down the corridor past Thomas's room. The last thing he wanted was for her to go disappearing as well. "I aint checked all of these rooms and there's some light comin' in through the windows so we should be able to make out somethin'."

It was when they were in the process of checking the second room, and feeling frustrated at not being able to find anybody, that the shrill sound of a loud scream cut through the silence. Makepeace darted out into the corridor just as the second scream was heard, and she could sense that both had come from the direction in which she had heard the door slamming earlier.

Dempsey emerged into the corridor just in time to spot the figure of a person dart out of one room ahead of them and disappear further into the darkness. They both instinctively moved down the hallway.

The door of the room which the person had exited had been left open and a dim light from outside the window shone into the corridor where Dempsey and Makepeace were standing.

"Stay there," Dempsey said, pushing past Makepeace and making a quick assessment of the room. There was nothing to see and so he turned, with the intention of exploring the darker recesses of the corridor ahead of them. He stopped however suddenly and Makepeace was perplexed to see him staring at her feet. He abruptly looked up at her seconds afterwards.

"Go open the door of the room next to here," he said, looking downwards again as if he were inspecting the floor.

"What? Why?" She followed his line of sight but saw nothing unusual.

"I wanna get more light out there, in the hallway," he replied. "Open more doors so we can see better."

It made sense so she opened up the last few rooms they had passed and turned to find Dempsey again. It was then that she realised what he had been looking at and she gasped in shock at the sight of the corridor floor.

In a small space next to the room outside which Dempsey and Makepeace were standing, and yet so oblivious to them, hovered two dark figures. One wanted to run and their anxiety was clear in their eyes but the other had more of an air of determination about them, the woman was ready to do whatever was necessary to end this and that meant dealing with the people in the corridor. She stood at the top of a set of steps which divided the rooms on the first floor and ran down to the ground floor and basement. That would provide them both with an escape route should things go wrong. The woman backed herself against the wall at the top of the steps and focused on the mirror that was hung on the wall across the corridor. She could just make out enough to be able to see when the people were nearing her and she clenched the object in her hands tightly, ready to strike.

Dempsey heard the distant shuffling of feet and grabbed Makepeace's arm, indicating for her not to speak so that he could listen for more movement. He pointed down the corridor and urged her to follow him. They edged forward slowly, step by step.

The woman suddenly spotted a figure in the mirror and she lifted the object in her hands into the air. If she struck with enough force maybe she could render the person unconscious and then she would be more able to deal with them. The second figure behind the woman watched her but now that her attention was elsewhere the figure decided that it was time to escape, and it edged backwards down the next step before scuttling off down to the basement.

The noise alerted Dempsey and he broke away from Makepeace to seek out the concealed person. Suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his head and he lunged at the shadowy figure which had assaulted him, finding an arm, taking a firm hold of it and twisting it behind the person's back. The person squealed and Makepeace shouted out to Dempsey, afraid for his safety. The woman shouted out in unison.

"What have you done with him? You won't get away with this!"

"What? Who are you?" Dempsey replied, attempting to drag the woman into the stream of light coming through the open door of the room they had been in.

"Who are _you?_" the woman asked with surprise, and without warning Dempsey found a bright light shining into his face.

He blinked to clear his vision and saw that he had hold of a young woman who was shining a torch into his face.

He growled. "Lieutenant Dempsey, where is Lord Maybrook? And what the hell has been going on here?"

Makepeace got out her ID and showed the woman.

"Oh thank god!" the woman said, looking from Makepeace to Dempsey. "I thought you were the intruder! Sorry about that." Dempsey released her arm suddenly and rubbed his sore head. "I don't know where Lord Maybrook is but someone has got in here and did you see the blood? It's all over the place."

They all looked to the floor at the trail of blood which was smudged across it.

"What exactly have you seen?" Makepeace asked.

"Nothing really. I was in my room watching TV when I heard screaming. I ran out to see what was happening and went to Lord Maybrook's room but couldn't find him. When I returned here, that's when I saw all the blood. Do you want me to turn the electricity back on now?"

"You turned it off?" Dempsey said with surprise.

"Yes, the box is in the basement. I thought it would make things harder for the intruder but anyone who lives here would know the house like the back of their hands."

"Anyone who lives here? So far the only people we've seen here are Lord Maybrook and Bessie!" Makepeace exclaimed. "Who else lives here and where on earth are they all?"

"I think there's just me, Sue, Bessie and Lord Maybrook here tonight. Although I think Sue has run off by now. The rest of the staff have gone to a party in the village."

"But why have we never seen any of the others before?" Makepeace asked.

The woman sighed. "It's Bessie, she's just so soft on everyone that they take advantage of her. Many of them go away for days and then just turn up when they like. I don't expect to see any of them until later on tomorrow. Anyway, I'll go and turn the lights back on now that you're here," she said, turning towards the stairs.

"Wait," Dempsey put a hand on her arm to halt her. "Why did someone scream earlier? The sound came from over here."

"Sue and I bumped into each other. We both thought we'd collided with the intruder."

"What's your name by the way?" he asked.

"Sarah ," she replied. He nodded and removed his hand.

"Makepeace will go with you, just in case," he added.

As Makepeace followed Sarah down the stairs she wondered what Dempsey had meant by 'just in case'. Did he suspect the woman?

While they were gone Dempsey tried to examine the trail of blood and when the lights came back on he was able to follow the trail back towards, and past, Thomas's room. The blood stopped outside a room further down the corridor than they had managed to look before and he could just hear Sarah and Makepeace's voices when they remerged from the stairway as he reached out for the door knob. Before he had a chance to open the door however he heard a loud cry for help coming from inside the room and reached for his gun.

"That sounded like Bessie," Sarah said to Makepeace, running down the corridor. Makepeace ran after her.

"Harry! Call for an ambulance!" Dempsey shouted out from within the room.


	41. Chapter 41

"Where's the nearest telephone?" Makepeace asked Sarah. Sarah was more intent on getting to the room where Dempsey was but Makepeace halted her and grabbed her firmly by the arms. "If someone is hurt then the speed at which I get to a phone can mean the difference between life or death," she warned.

"Err, there's one in the room next to Thomas's," she finally replied.

Makepeace kept hold of one of Sarah's arms and took her with her to the room. She didn't know what had happened in the other room and for all she knew it could be unsafe for Sarah.

"Here," Sarah said, rushing through the door, "It's at the other side of the bed...Thomas!" she shouted out with concern when she saw him on the floor by the bedside table.

They both rushed to his side and he seemed extremely weak. Makepeace picked up the receiver and phoned for an ambulance.

"You stay here with him," Makepeace instructed Sarah, "I'm going to the other room, okay?"

A tearful Sarah nodded.

Makepeace had no idea what to expect when she entered the other room but she had at least expected some answers. She got none. What she did get was a frantic Bessie weeping and wailing and an injured jack sitting on the floor.

"You believe me don't you?" Bessie appealed to Makepeace when she walked into the room.

"What on earth has happened?" Makepeace frowned.

Bessie paced the room, throwing her hands in the air, screeching and sobbing as she spoke.

"He broke in, I was frightened! I knew he was up to no good. He was after Thomas, god knows what he would have done if I hadn't stopped him!"

At that point Jack gasped but managed to speak. "Didn't do nothing to Thomas... She stabbed me... look!" He looked down at his hands that were holding his middle which was seeping blood into his clothes.

"He attacked me!" Bessie screeched in a panic, pointing an accusatory finger at him. "He broke into the house!" She turned to Dempsey then and held out her hands in appeal to him. "I didn't want to stab him, I warned him to stay back but he lunged for me and it all happened so fast! You have to believe me!"

Dempsey didn't know what to believe.

"Don't matter what she says," Jack cut in with a whimper, clutching at his middle, "She stabbed me... She's going down... for that."

"What's going to happen to me?" she asked Dempsey, "Will I go to jail?" Her eyes were wild with fear.

"You'll have some questions to answer, you realise that though," he replied.

Bessie covered her face with her hands and began to pace again. "I know! I know! But I didn't mean this to happen! I didn't want Thomas to get hurt and I was so frightened, I thought he was going to kill me!"

"All right, stay calm," Dempsey said, putting an arm around Bessie and encouraging her to walk with him into the corridor. She was working herself up into a frenzy and whatever had happened, Jack was still injured quite badly, her frantic babbling wasn't helping matters. Makepeace followed them and drew Dempsey's attention, whispering to him,

"I've phoned for an ambulance and I've also found Thomas."

Dempsey's eyes widened.

"He's weak but he hasn't been injured. Sarah is with him."

"Will you stay here," his eyes moved with purpose to Bessie. "I'd like to check on him."

"Dempsey, Sarah is with him and I really need to check on Jack," she pointed out somewhat apologetically. He nodded.

Makepeace re-entered the room and approached Jack to assess his injuries. "Is it just one stab wound there?" she asked, crouching down next to him.

He nodded. "Can't feel nothing," he gasped, as his head fell forward.

"An ambulance is on its way," she assured him, lifting his head up, "but you need to stay conscious."

She wondered whether she should try to stop the bleeding with something but looking at his hands clenched over his middle, he seemed to be doing a good enough job himself and she didn't want to disturb the wound further. She considered asking him some questions as well but decided against that too. He needed his strength and he didn't look as if he could answer any questions anyway. She stood and glanced around the room, hoping to see something that would give her a clue as to what had happened that night. There was a trail of blood from the door to the bed and from the bed to where Jack was now sitting, and then she spotted the knife. It looked like a kitchen knife and it was discarded at the bottom of the bed, partly covered by the bedcovers.

Suddenly she was aware of the sound of sirens outside and she headed for the door.

"I'll be back Jack, the ambulance is here now."

She rushed past Dempsey in the corridor. "I'll let them in."

In fact it was the police that had arrived first and she spoke briefly to them before the ambulance pulled up into the driveway.

She showed the men up the stairs and gave the paramedics a quick summary of the casualties. As they moved into the two rooms to see to Thomas and Jack, Dempsey called Makepeace over.

He moved a little away from Bessie who was now seated on a chair in the corridor.

"Will you take Bessie in for questioning? I'll come as soon as I can but I'd like to go with Thomas and Jack. I'll see if I can question either of them while I'm there."

Makepeace nodded and moved to Bessie, explaining what would happen next, whilst Dempsey went to see Thomas.

Bessie was escorted downstairs and Makepeace persuaded the police to let Bessie go in her car to SI10, borrowing one of the officers to take with her, while the other officers inspected the house.

As Makepeace pulled out of the driveway Bessie sat behind her, with her arms around her middle, rocking in her seat.

She spoke suddenly and Makepeace could see Bessie's wild eyes appealing to her in the mirror.

"He broke into the house! Surely I won't be punished for protecting myself in my own home!"

"Unfortunately the law isn't so clear cut on that issue," Makepeace replied. "He will have more rights because you assaulted him."

Bessie gave a weak cry and began rocking again. "But I didn't assault him, he assaulted me and the knife just went in!"

***********

In the ambulance Jack called Dempsey over to him.

"She can't get away with this, she won't will she? She's telling lies, I did nothing wrong!" he exclaimed.


	42. Chapter 42

Dempsey slid down in his seat in the hospital waiting room and placed his feet on the table in front of him. He laced his hands in his lap and sat for some time simply staring at the door with a distant, but troubled look. He had paced the corridor outside Thomas's room until the early hours of the morning, at which time the nurses had insisted that he take a seat in the waiting room.

It wasn't long before Makepeace's face appeared at the window in the door and she entered.

"How are they? I couldn't get much out of the receptionist," she said, approaching Dempsey and taking a seat next to him.

"Jack is in surgery, Thomas aint doin' so good," he replied, still staring blankly ahead of him.

"What does that mean? Are they going to be all right?" she asked, trying to assess Dempsey's mood.

"They think Jack will pull through, Thomas..." he shrugged.

"What precisely happened to Thomas?" She wished that he would be more specific, and it would be nice if he looked at her!

"I dunno do I, I can't talk to them!" he replied at little impatiently.

She took in a deep breath and gritted her teeth before speaking again. "Well was he injured? Assaulted? Was it the fall or just his previous condition? What?"

"Previous condition," he stated.

"Dempsey!" she exclaimed, grabbing him by the arm and making him look at her. "We need to discuss this case and I get the distinct impression that this is very much a one way conversation here!"

He sighed and ran a hand over his face. "I'm sorry all right, it's just that..." He felt angry and frustrated and he was taking it out on her which wasn't fair. "Whatever happened the end result is the same. Thomas is now on a downward slope with no family around, apart from his so called grandson who is now under suspicion."

"What do you mean 'whatever happened'? Isn't that our job, to find out exactly what did happen?" What was wrong with him? "Besides, Jack is the one who's been stabbed; you can't just assume that he was behind all of this."

"Harry, I don't trust neither of them but you gotta ask yourself, why did Jack break in?" he put to her.

"We only have Bessie's word for it that he did! Oh, and supposedly Sue's," she added.

"Sue's?"

"Yes, the girl who was with Sarah last night but then ran off. Bessie claims that she was a witness but conveniently she couldn't be contacted last night."

"Okay, but why would Bessie give this Sue as a witness to back up her claims if she knew she couldn't be contacted? And besides, she'll probably be back at the house now, she does live there, right?"

"Fine, but Bessie claims that the knife was Jack's. She says there was a struggle and the knife went in accidentally. Does that make sense to you? That Bessie could overpower Jack?"

"Hey look, Bessie aint exactly petite. You know what strength a person can have when they're bein' threatened, the adrenalin pumpin'."

She paused for thought. "She also claimed that she was running _away_ from him."

"So she turned and fought back!"

Makepeace stared at Dempsey for a moment. "So you think it's Jack then?"

"I aint sayin' that. Maybe it was a bit of both of them."

"Both of them trying to do what?" she asked.

"Well it seems to me that before Jack came on the scene Bessie was the only person who'd been in Thomas's life for any length of time so what do you think the chances are of her being in his will?"

"Very likely, so she'd want Jack out of the scene then wouldn't she?"

"Or Jack would want her out of the scene, maybe Thomas too, so he breaks into the house..."

"Supposedly," she cut in.

Dempsey turned to Makepeace suddenly. "Look, there was a reason he was hangin' round the house in the first place. He aint given us no reasonable explanation for that so far!"

Makepeace groaned. "How on earth are we going to sort this whole mess out?"

"We gotta talk to Thomas," Dempsey replied adamantly.

Yes but Thomas was clearly seriously ill if they wouldn't let Dempsey talk to him, and who was to say that he would ever be well enough to shed light on all of this.

Makepeace stood up suddenly. "We have to speak to Sue. She's the only other person who may have seen something. We should be able to get at least _something_ out of her."

She looked down at Dempsey who didn't appear to be inclined to move. He looked up at her. "You wanna go now?"

"Yes. We need to talk to her as soon as possible."

He shook his head. "We should stay here to talk to Thomas."

She stared at him, sighed and sat down next to him again. It was clear that he had become emotionally involved in this case and his present mood swing was concerning her. "Dempsey, Thomas is an ill man. We may not be able to talk to him today."

He frowned. "You don't know that."

She placed a hand on top of his. "He isn't going to get better in the long run, you do realise that?"

His reply was quite abrupt. "That's why I gotta talk to him!"

She wondered whether he was more concerned with talking to him about the case or just seeing him again while he still had the chance.

"Dempsey, Spikings wants us to bring this Sue in for questioning. You have to be present at the questioning of our only witness!" she pointed out. He ran a weary hand over his face and her heart went out to him. He had really developed some kind of connection with Thomas and it was clear that he was reluctant to leave. "Look, ill cover for you afterwards and you can pop back here to check up on him but you should be there during the interview," she reasoned.

He sighed and rose out of his chair. "This Sue had better come up with somethin' good," he said, wondering if by going back to SI10 he'd miss the opportunity to speak to Thomas for the last time.


	43. Chapter 43

"Do you know why we've brought you here this morning Miss Barclay?" Dempsey asked a nervous looking Sue.

Sue's eyes flitted from Dempsey to Makepeace and back. "Is it about what happened at the house?"

She knew full well it was and Dempsey wasn't in the mood for pussy footing around. "What _did_ happen at the house Miss Barclay?" Dempsey said, answering her question with another.

Sue's eyes flicked downwards as she contemplated what to say. "Bessie and Thomas's grandson argued."

"Did you see them arguing?" Makepeace questioned.

Sue paused. "I heard shouting and something crashing to the floor."

Makepeace stared at her for a while before speaking. "That's not exactly what I asked. Did you actually _see _them together last night?"

Sue hesitated. "Yes," she answered quietly.

Dempsey inhaled deeply, trying to hold his patience in.

"And what did you see?" Makepeace pushed.

"There was a lot of blood on the floor," Sue answered vaguely.

Makepeace nodded. "Yes, we all saw the blood on the floor but did you see how it got there?" Sue was clearly holding back.

"I didn't see much, it was dark," she answered.

Dempsey's impatience got the better of him. "Look, did ya see Bessie stab Jack or not?" he barked out.

Sue looked suddenly panic stricken and Makepeace turned to glare at Dempsey before addressing her again.

"Bessie has told us that you witnessed the stabbing," she said, watching for a reaction in Sue's face.

Harry got the reaction she was looking for as every drop of colour suddenly drained out of Sue.

"Is that correct?" Makepeace asked. "Did you see Bessie stabbing Jack?"

Sue nodded and looked to the floor but said nothing else.

"Listen," Makepeace began, touching Sue's hand lightly, "if you can't give us any details on this I'm afraid that you are going to be implicated." Sue's eyes widened in shock at the thought. "It is in your best interests to tell us everything you know." Makepeace gave her a moment to consider that. "Now," Makepeace sat back in her chair, "let's start from the beginning. Where were you when you first heard the shouting and crashing?"

Sue hesitated for a while and then almost jumped out of her seat when Dempsey growled and began to pace the room like a penned in tiger.

"Err, I was in my room," she said quickly, nervously eyeing Dempsey. "The noises were coming from one of the rooms down the corridor not far from me."

"Okay, and did you hear anything of what was being said?"

Sue paused again just a little too long before shaking her head. "I couldn't hear through the walls. I just heard shouting."

Makepeace was beginning to get a little exasperated herself. "And what happened after you heard the shouting?" she asked.

"Nothing, it went quiet," she replied.

Dempsey growled again and paced even more furiously.

"So when did you see the stabbing?" Makepeace asked, raising her voice slightly with annoyance.

Dempsey had had enough. He stormed over to Sue, leaning over the table towards her and banging his fist loudly on its surface.

"Listen here, there's an old man on his death bed in hospital right now," he shouted, pointing to the door, "At the moment he's got a son who hasn't been near him for years, a grandson whose been accused of assaulting him in his bed and a damn housekeeper who's... well god knows what she's been up to! Now I'm losing my patience here real rapidly, so if you don't give us the information we need I'm gonna make it my business to throw the book at you for any damn thing I can!"

Sue looked terrified and glanced across at Makepeace. "Aren't I allowed a lawyer or something before I say anymore?" she appealed.

Makepeace sighed and rose out of her seat. "Will you excuse us for a moment," she said, heading for the door and glaring at Dempsey as she went. He strode angrily after her.

"What is wrong with you?" she asked, once they were outside the door.

"What's wrong with me?" he replied in disbelief. "What's up with her? She knows what happened and she aint sayin' a thing!"

" I was actually getting somewhere with her before you started shouting the odds. You're making her clam up! Will you just calm down?"

He breathed in deeply and gave her a sarcastic smile. "By all means. If you think you can get her to talk anytime today," he gestured to the door, "be my guest."

"Thank you," she replied with a note of sarcasm as she re-entered the room.

"I'm sorry about my partner here Miss Barclay. We just have a few more questions. Lieutenant Dempsey is just going to _observe _the proceedings from now on," she said, turning briefly to give Dempsey a purposeful glare. Sue looked uncertain but remained quiet. "Now," Makepeace began again, lacing her hands together on the table in front of her, "you said that everything went quiet, what time was this and how long after were you aware that someone had been injured?"

Again Sue looked reluctant to answer and a tense silence settled upon the room. Before long the pressure of the silence began to take its toll on Sue's already taught nerves and she felt obliged to speak up.

"It was about half past seven," she blurted out.

This got Dempsey's attention. "Seven thirty? That aint right!" he said instinctively before realisation dawned on his face and he slammed his fist against the wall. "I knew it! I knew somethin' was off when that woman lured me downstairs and then said that Jack had left after. He hadn't left at all, he was still there, wasn't he?" Dempsey shouted at Sue.

She stared at her hands that were clasped in her lap and nodded. "They argued after you left."

Dempsey saw red suddenly then and dived for the door, receiving shocked looks from both Sue and Makepeace. Makepeace bolted after him, telling an officer outside the door to wait in the interview room with Sue.

"Dempsey!" she called after him. "What the bloody hell are you doing?"

"Where is she?" he yelled angrily, heading straight for the next interview room.

Makepeace caught up with him just as he reached the door and slid in front of him, barring the way.

"Move out the way," he said, through gritted teeth.

She folded her arms and glared at him. "What for? In case you hadn't noticed we were in the middle of interviewing Sue back there."

"Let me in to talk to that woman," he seethed, pointing to the door, "I'll get the truth out of her and we'll not need to waste our time on Sue no more!"

"Dempsey, Bessie isn't going to crack but Sue will if you just give me a chance!"

He ignored Makepeace's plea and went to grasp the door handle behind her. "I'm goin' in to talk to Bessie!"

She brushed his hand away. "Not like this you're not!"

"What's wrong with you? Let me get in there and do my job!" he shouted, trying to push past her.

She pushed him back. "That's just it though Dempsey, you're not doing your job!"

His expression hardened. "What the hell's that supposed to mean?"

"Exactly what I said! You're not subjective in all this, that's plainly obvious!" she came back. He huffed. "How many times have you been the one to say to me that work and emotion don't mix? You're too emotionally involved!"

That threw him for a few seconds but he bounced back quickly. "Oh come on sergeant, don't preach to me! I'm goin' in there to finish this damn case!"

"You don't want to go in there to finish the case!" she contradicted him. "You're going in there with some misplaced vendetta on behalf of Thomas, and what's more you still don't have the full facts!"

"Oh come on Harry, you can be real proud of yourself this time, you were right for once, she's guilty as hell!"

Right for once! That was below the belt! And although in the back of her head she knew that Dempsey's whole attitude that day had a lot to do with Thomas's weakening condition and his concern for him, the fact that his words hurt angered her more.

"I thought she might have been guilty, I didn't assume that as fact!" she growled back at him. "That's what professional police officers do Dempsey, find out the facts!" she shouted.

"Well let me get in there and find out the facts then!" he shouted back.

"No, no I won't," she refused, putting her hands on her hips. "And I'll tell you why, because you go in there with all guns blazing in the state you're in now and at best you're going to get yourself suspended, at worst, fired and thrown out of the bloody country!"

He rolled his eyes. "I never knew you cared!" he answered sarcastically, changing tact.

What the bloody hell was that supposed to mean? "Well against my better judgement, I do!"

For some reason her answer stung. "That just sums everythin' up don't it?"

She hadn't got a clue what he was talking about and her expression reflected that.

"You Harry!" he enlightened her, "You stickin' to the rules all the time! You aint got no instincts! All you got is your 'better judgement', and your damn professionalism. You aint got the guts to go any further, to take a risk on somethin' that could work out!"

Harry was no longer sure if Dempsey was referring to policing or their personal life, but either way his words were cutting through her like a knife. Then, through her haze of hurt, Makepeace suddenly became aware of someone calling her name. She looked past Dempsey to see an officer rushing towards them.

"Sergeant Makepeace!" the officer stopped beside them and spoke a little breathlessly. "Miss Barclay says she is ready to talk to you but only if she can be assured of police protection if she has to testify."

"Okay, thank you," she replied, reluctant to move until she knew that Dempsey was going to leave Bessie for the time being. The officer retreated back down the corridor and Dempsey followed him but not before turning to have the last word.

"If you want this to work you gotta give more back! 'Cause either you're with me, or you aint!"

Makepeace wished that they weren't at SI10 at that moment because she would have loved to have given Dempsey a proper piece of her mind! As it was, she stormed after him but was confused to see him stride straight past the interview room.

"Where are you going?" she called after him.

"Back to the hospital!" he shouted over his shoulder. "Since I aint needed here!"

Fine! She'd be better off with him out of the way anyway but she wasn't going to let him go without having her say. Catching him up, she grabbed his arm and swung him around to face her.

"I don't know exactly where you were going with that Dempsey, but as far as work is concerned, I won't go along with what I know to be wrong just because you _think_ you're right! And as far as anything else is concerned, if there's any uncertainty it's not one-sided! Just take a look at yourself!"

**This may seem as if they are going downhill but im working upto the big love scene which I'll post in the next few days. **


	44. Chapter 44

Harry's mind was in a muddle when she re entered the interview room but she needed to push her shouting match with Dempsey to the back of her head, at least until Sue had made her statement.

Sue was considerably relieved to see that Dempsey hadn't followed Makepeace back into the room and, Harry had been right, the following process was a lot easier without him there.

"The officer said that you were willing to make a statement Miss Barclay," Makepeace began, reaching out to Sue and taking hold of her hand reassuringly. "You will get the protection you need if someone is threatening you."

Sue nodded and took in a deep breath before beginning. "Bessie is trying to cover her tracks with me because she thinks I'm too afraid to go against her but she messed up last night. She went too far and I don't want all this over my head!" Sue exclaimed, close to tears.

Makepeace squeezed her hand. "Did you see who assaulted who?" she asked.

"Yes, they were having another shouting match and Bessie was worrying me. I've seen her angry before and I know that she goes for that knife of hers..."

"Hold on," Makepeace interrupted, "Bessie has a knife?" If that was the case and the knife she used on Jack was hers then Bessie's statement was already falling apart.

"Yes, she says she keeps it in her room for protection, since all the talk of someone loitering around the house, but she wielded it at Sarah once."

Makepeace's eyes widened. "Can you tell me more about that? Did you see that incident as well?"

"No, but Sarah told me about it. You see Bessie doesn't like the staff in the house too much. I think if she had her way she'd get us all to move out. She's so territorial over Rainington, as if the place belongs to her. Anyway me and Sarah, and a few others, don't always leave the house in the evenings, we don't have anywhere to go! So this one night Bessie had told us that she needed us to leave the house for a while that evening, she made up some excuse about Thomas being nervous and having to look after him and that she was the only one he trusted. Well me and Sarah were quite annoyed, being thrown out of our own home, so we decided to stay. Bessie thought everyone had left and she bumped into Sarah and threatened her with the knife. She said that she thought Sarah was an intruder but Sarah said she held the knife up to her and told her she needed to leave. She said that she thought Bessie was going to attack her!"

Okay so if Sarah could identify the knife used last night as the one Bessie threatened her with then that would be proof that the knife was indeed Bessie's.

"Right, that's helpful information thank you, but sorry I interrupted you. You were saying that you were worried about the shouting, then what happened?"

"Well I wanted to get out, I was frightened. I went into the corridor and Jack walked past me. Seconds later Bessie ran after him shouting that he was an intruder and that he was going to attack us all! She had the knife in her hand but Jack didn't see it, it seemed like he just wanted to leave. But Bessie didn't want him to leave, she was fuming with him and well, he turned when she caught up with him and he pushed her hand away but she just went back at him until the knife went in. I was terrified and then Bessie noticed me in the corridor, she looked straight at me and held the knife up again. She said, "You saw Jack attack me didn't you?" I nodded and backed into my room again. I didn't want to go near her so I thought I might be able to sneak down the back steps to the basement and get out that way as soon as I could without her noticing. I was on my way out when I bumped into Sarah."

Makepeace nodded. "Why do you think that Bessie attacked Jack?" she asked.

Sue gave a shaky laugh. "That's obvious. She wants Rainington! There was talk of Thomas leaving it to her but she must have thought that he'd end up leaving it to her son, or Jack, when he turned up."

"But Thomas himself told us that he'd disinherited his son and that he'd never see him again," Makepeace put to her.

"Well I know that there was a huge falling out and then they left the country but I always felt that Thomas really did want to make things up with his family. Some of the other staff heard him saying this too. We all hoped that meant he'd end up leaving everything to them, not Bessie. But that seemed even more likely when Jack turned up because he would find it easier to talk to Jack than his son after all this time. Just the fact that he agreed to see Jack must say something about how he felt, and you know it was Bessie who always kept going on to Thomas about how bad his son was, I think she put ideas into his head! In the end though family is more important, at least that's what I hope Thomas will decide."

So, there was motive, the knife was Bessie's and Jack hadn't broken into the house as Bessie had claimed. With the forensic evidence and testimony from Sue and the other staff it looked as if this case was closed. Harry's thoughts went to Dempsey then though and she wondered how poor Thomas was doing.

"The problem is that Thomas might not have a lot of time to make any decisions. Last night took a huge toll on his health," Makepeace pointed out.

Sue looked back at Makepeace anxiously. "Well then the question is, did she get away with it? Has Thomas left everything to Bessie?"


	45. Chapter 45

When Dempsey left the hospital late that afternoon he had no idea what to do or where to go. He didn't want to go back to the silence and loneliness of his flat so he got in his car and simply drove. Thomas's last words went around and around his head until his eyes were so awash with tears that he was eventually forced to stop driving and he pulled into a quiet lay-by. He sat staring out the door window at a hedge, with his face turned away from the road. He felt to utterly hopeless and everything just seemed so bleak. Watching Thomas die had forced him to take a look at his own life and it had also reminded him of his own immortality. What had he achieved in his life? Okay so he had put a lot of hardened criminals behind bars but he'd also made a hell of a lot of enemies along the way, so much so that he couldn't even return to his country of birth.

And so he found himself stuck in the U.K, sat at the side of a road with no one to turn to. Yes, he loved Harry, more than he could ever have imagined loving anyone, but in a way that made him feel even more lonely and hopeless because he couldn't go to her in the state he was in. And besides, what did he really have to offer her in the long run? He wasn't in the same league as her so there was no use him kidding himself that he was. Thomas had been wrong. There are some things people just cant get past and to begin a relationship with her only to watch it finally fizzle out and die would be way too much for him to handle. And he convinced himself that it would fizzle out, after the novelty of having a bit of fun with a yank from the ghetto wore off.

Harry put down the telephone receiver and stood for a while staring at it and wondering where on earth Dempsey had gone. She had had such an uneasy feeling ever since she'd heard that Thomas had died and she had been unable to contact Dempsey. Their last conversation had also troubled her. He wasn't himself at all and his last comment had almost felt like an ultimatum! But what had she done wrong so suddenly?

Well she had tried phoning him five times now so all she could do was to wait a while and try again later. She'd cook herself something to eat, at least that would keep her busy and stop her from standing by the telephone and redialling Dempsey's number every five minutes!

Harry busied herself with chopping up some vegetables and preparing some meat for the oven but once she had finished and was waiting for it to cook she was itching to try telephoning Dempsey again. But maybe he was at home and just not picking up the phone. Maybe he didn't want to talk to anyone. She could imagine that because when he was upset he often kept it all inside. But she just had to talk to him, to check he was okay at least.

She decided to resist the urge to phone him again until she had eaten, however she really didn't want the food and she had to force down each mouthful, eventually giving up and pushing her plate aside.

She tried again and again to contact him that evening but his telephone just rang out and so she eventually gave up and went to bed. Sleep was impossible for her though, and after tossing and turning in her bed for about an hour she threw back the covers and got out of bed, determined to find Dempsey that night. She'd go to his flat and if he wasn't there she'd drive around all night if that was what it would take to find him!

Harry stood outside Dempsey's apartment block with her finger on the buzzer and wondered why he had got a key for her house but she hadn't got a key for his. She was just about to give up and leave after ten minutes of constant buzzing when finally the door released and she was able to enter the building. As she climbed the stairs to Dempsey's apartment she tried to figure out what she was going to say to him and she wondered what state he'd be in.

When Dempsey answered the door, for a moment she thought he wasn't going to let her in.

"I was sleepin'," he said behind the door. "What's up?"

She took a look at his half closed eyes but she had woken him up many times before and those weren't sleepy eyes, they were red and swollen and full of pain.

"I've been phoning you all evening. Where have you been?" she asked.

"Out," he answered simply.

"Right." This wasn't going to be easy. "Well can I come in?"

He turned briefly to look back into his hallway. "You know I was sleepin'," he repeated, "Can't it wait?"

She gave him a look of disbelief. "I've come all across town to see how you are Dempsey!"

He sighed and resigned himself to having to talk to her. "You didn't need to," he said, walking away from the door and leaving her to follow him.

They entered the lounge and he began to search through newspapers and items of clothing that were strewn over the sofa. As she watched him she suddenly realised that she wasn't as prepared to talk to him as she'd thought. She wanted to ask him about Thomas but she had the feeling that it would be an extremely tricky subject to broach with him. But then again, that was why she had come.

"I'm sorry…about earlier. I know you wanted to get back to the hospital," she said, testing the water.

He didn't respond but continued his search by moving over to the mantelpiece.

"What are you looking for?" she asked.

He seemed reluctant to talk at all and growled with annoyance, pacing the room and glancing around himself.

She walked over to the sofa and shifted some of the objects, taking a look herself. "Dempsey, what are you looking for?" she repeated.

He finally stopped pacing and turned to her, at which point he spotted what he'd been searching for at the corner of the sofa seat.

"These," he said, lunging for them gratefully.

She watched as he took a cigarette out of the packet and lit it. He glanced up at her afterwards and gave her a look as if to say, "Go on, I dare you. Just try and stop me!"

She knew it was futile.

"Hey look," he smiled falsely, "you did me a favour, 'cause if you hadn't driven me out of SI10 I'd have not got to see Thomas die," he said bitterly.

Harry fell silent for a while with his comment hanging in the air.

"That must have been awful," she said quietly.

"Yeah well it wasn't a stroll in the park," he replied, turning his back on her and staring out of the window.

She slowly approached him and hesitantly placed a hand on his arm. He shook it off and threw the cigarette out of the window before turning suddenly to face her.

"I can't do this Harry."

She looked taken aback. "Can't do what?"

"This, with you here like this. I need to be alone."

His rejection stung and she suddenly felt quite irritated with him. How patient and understanding did he expect her to be?

"Well I'm sorry about Thomas and everything Dempsey and I'm sorry that we argued today but you know I was only looking out for you because damn it, I don't want to see you lose your job. And to be honest with you Thomas was a great man and everything but I care about you more, a lot more for god sake!" she exclaimed with exasperation. "So that's where my priorities lay," she finished quietly, wondering where his priorities lay.

Damn, he didn't want to hear that! It just made it harder to reject her. He didn't deserve her anyway, and he'd never be able to keep her so what was the point in trying? At that moment he felt so morbid and worthless that he just wanted to wallow in self-pity and reject everyone. He couldn't take comfort from her because he didn't want to feel better; he wanted to feel the pain.

"You know this aint ever gonna end, us fightin' all the time. We're too different," he came out with suddenly.

What was he working up to? Her whole body went cold suddenly and she felt as if she had been there before because in her head she had imagined this, his rejection of her, and it was why she had held him back for so long.

"Well, I can see you want to be alone so I'll be off now," she said, turning to leave before he said anymore.

"Harry," he said, halting her. She stopped but didn't turn to him.

She willed him not to say anymore, not to verbalise something that he couldn't take back. Something that would end it for both of them.

"What?"

He felt torn to pieces and what he was going to say would kill him inside but something made him continue.

"You and me, we ain't workin'."

No! Why? Why would he say that! She felt a strange numbness and although her mind registered his words she wasn't feeling the effects of them. She would no doubt feel that later.

She took in a deep breath and turned, smiling politely. "Well I'm sorry to have to say this Dempsey but you're stuck with me. And we had this conversation the first day that Spikings partnered us but I doubt he'll budge on that now." She purposely avoided addressing their personal relationship.

"That aint what I mean and you know it," he replied.

She put her hands on her hips. "Well what else would you mean eh Dempsey?" She laughed, "You can't bloody well say you want us to split up before we ever got together!"

He huffed. "Yeah well I didn't wanna mislead you."

"Don't worry, you haven't. Well, at least everything will be back to normal at work between us," she said casually, trivialising the situation. At the same time however she knew that her comment would bother him because she knew that he would find it difficult working with her. "See you in the office tomorrow," she said, leaving the lounge.

Dempsey was fuming. He'd never felt so angry before in his life. He had so many pent up feelings within him he just didn't know what to do with them so he stormed back into his bedroom, picked up the nearest thing he could find and hurled it at the wall, making a dent in the plaster and breaking the back of the chair. He spent the next ten minutes throwing objects around the room and destroying anything he could find until he felt exhausted, both physically and emotionally, and he collapsed on the bed. He lay looking at the ceiling with tears falling uncontrollably but silently from his eyes.

Unbeknown to him, in the hallway, Harry sat on the floor with her back to the wall, her legs tucked up against her and tears streaming down her face. The worst of it all was that even though he had rejected her, when she had heard the first crash she just couldn't leave him. She was so concerned for him. Finally the crashing had finished and she waited for a few minutes, wiping her eyes before rising off the floor and tiptoeing to his bedroom door. She peered cautiously through the gap and saw Dempsey lying on the bed, his face contorted with pain and anguish. He moved suddenly and she sprung back but he didn't see her, he had turned in the bed to face the opposite wall.

Then, without thinking too much about what she was doing, she slipped off her shoes, following that with her skirt and lastly her blouse, and she crept into the room. Sliding into the bed behind him she quickly reached for him and grabbed his shoulder, stopping him from turning around.

"Don't say anything and don't move, just listen. I don't care if you don't want me here, if you want to get rid of me tonight you're going to have to physically throw me out because I'm not leaving you in this state. Whether you like it or not you need me here now, at least just to get through this night," she said, slipping her arm around his middle and holding him close to her.

His tears started anew then and he was far too weak to reject the comfort that she was offering. He laced his fingers with hers and pulled her arm against him, taking comfort from her nearness.

He didn't say a word more to her that night and she kept silent too. Neither of them got much sleep but with each other, they made it through the night.


	46. Chapter 46

When Dempsey woke up the following morning he reached out for Harry but was disappointed to find the bed space next to him empty. He got out of bed and searched the flat in case she was still there but there was no sign of her. He felt exhausted so went back into his bedroom and lay on the bed for a while, trying to sort out his head. What on earth had happened to him yesterday? He'd never felt like that before and worst of all he could well have ruined everything between himself and Harry. Whatever had possessed him to say the things he had? And then, even after he'd treated her so appallingly, she'd actually stayed and comforted him all night. As he lay there thinking about it he realised that he'd never loved, respected and admired anyone so much in all his life and the thought that he may have lost her made him feel sick with panic and regret.

He went to work that morning clueless as to how to make it up to her and he spent most of the day trying to figure out how to broach the subject of his insane comments the night before. The more time that passed however the harder it seemed for him to know what to say and the only conversations they ended up having were work related. By the end of the day he was desperate to say something to her, anything, before she left. She always said goodbye to him but that day, of all days, she left without a word and he lost his opportunity.

When he went home that evening the depression of the night before came back with a vengeance and making it worse was the fact that he was now convinced that Harry wasn't going to give him another chance. What's more, if he was honest with himself, he couldn't blame her.

When Harry had gone into work that day she had hoped that Dempsey might have taken back what he'd said to her the night before but by the end of the day she was angry and upset. She'd spent that evening trying to convince herself that she didn't want a relationship with him anyway but the tears had begun to flow and by the time she had gone to bed she had concluded that perhaps what he'd said had been prompted by the shock of Thomas's death and that maybe in time, after he had healed, they could become closer again. She had to believe that and besides, it was a hell of a lot less torturous holding onto hope than coping with the thought that they would never be the couple that she desperately wanted them to be.

Over the following week Harry could tell just by looking at Dempsey's face that he was suffering and it was almost unbearable to see him like that and not be able to comfort him. As the days passed however some of the pain left his face and he began to act more like the Dempsey she was used to. He integrated more with the officers at work and she even spotted him surrounded by the guys at the coffee machine one afternoon, telling some humorous story. The officers laughed loudly and bantered with him and Harry sensed that they too were relieved to see Dempsey back to his usual self.

She was dismayed however to notice that he was still acting oddly towards her. When they spoke to each other it was as if they hardly knew each other, so formal were their conversations. And she had caught him staring at her on numerous occasions, but not in the way he had before Thomas's death, the way that she loved, as though he was fascinated with her, but in a more serious, troubled way. He was so distant, as if she couldn't reach him. And the longer this went on, the harder it became for her to approach him with anything other than work.

She had thought back to the way they had been before they gave into the attraction between them and she longed for that time back again. At least then she had known that he wanted and desired her but now she didn't sense that he was even the slightest bit attracted to her anymore and she ached for the kind of interaction there used to be between them. The smiles, the secret glances and playful comments.

Dempsey had been in turmoil ever since that first day back at work after Thomas's death. The realisation that Harry didn't want him anymore was crushing, even more so for the fact that it might have been his fault. He had thought about what Thomas had said to him before he'd died, and he wanted to believe it, accept it, but now he couldn't because he was convinced that Harry would never give him a second chance. He wanted her so much though, he wanted to tell her everything and he wanted the happy ever after life with her that Thomas had talked about more than he could have imagined but his life clearly wasn't going to be about happy ever afters. She had become so distant with him too and any hope of a future with her just seemed to be getting more and more unlikely, pushing him further into depression and unhappiness. On his worst days he had thought about just taking her to one side and begging her to take him back but he'd felt so guilty about what he'd said that he figured it wouldn't be fair on her, and as much as he wanted to be with her she really didn't deserve a rat like him anyway.

Harry had spent the first two weeks at home every evening, not feeling in the mood to catch up with friends for fear of dampening the mood. She'd hated the way her heart would lurch every time the telephone rang, hoping that it would be Dempsey; but it never was. Tonight was going to be different though. She had spoken to Pippa last night and Pippa had insisted that Simon and herself were going to pop around to see her with a few bottles of champagne in hand. Harry had shown enthusiasm this time as Pippa had telephoned at least twice over the last week to suggest a night out and Harry had begun to feel a little guilty for repeatedly making excuses for not meeting with them. Besides, it would do her good to relax with friends, at least it would take her mind off Dempsey for a few hours!

The working day was coming to an end and Harry only had to check over the last few items of paperwork before she could go home, enjoy a nice hot bath and tidy up the house ready for Pippa and Simon's visit. The guys in the office were being overly rowdy, as they quite often did towards the end of the day when their impatience to finish work was at its worst. Dempsey was sitting at his desk with his feet up reading a newspaper.

"Hey Dempsey!" one of the officers called out from across the room, "any chance of you handing over the TV section? Fry here wants to know what's on the box tonight 'cause he sure as hell won't be on a date!" he laughed. Fry huffed and stood up from his chair to launch a pen at the officer which missed and skittered across the floor. Another officer bent to retrieve it before gesturing Fry to the section of the newspaper that Dempsey was holding up for them. He collected it from Dempsey and threw it onto the officer's lap.

"Don't need it anyway, got other plans for tonight," he replied defensively, turning away as the officers sniggered behind him.

"Sure, a bible reading and a glass of coke!" the first officer laughed.

"So come on then, what we got to watch tonight?" Chas said, leaning against a desk with his arms folded.

The officer scanned the page and pulled a face. "Bloody girly soaps mostly." He continued to look.

"Baywatch!" an officer announced out of the blue. The guys turned to give him a questioning look. "Yeah, Baywatch is on tonight," he grinned. Four officers descended upon the newspaper to check if he was correct. "It's on late... after midnight sometime."

"He's right!" Chas confirmed.

"Too late for Fry to watch," an officer commented, causing laughter at Fry's expense.

"Hold on, this isn't bad, a bit of the old double o seven," Chas said, spotting a film amongst the list of programmes.

"Which one?" he was asked.

"Goldfinger," he replied.

The officer didn't look too impressed.

"Hey it's a classic film that one," Chas piped up. "Especially the Shirley Eaton scenes."

"Ahhh, yeah, I remember now," another officer began wistfully, "Shirley Eaton lying completely naked on a bed covered from head to toe in gold paint."

"Can you really die from being covered with gold paint?" Fry asked suddenly.

The first officer laughed. "Yeah right, you heard Spikings complaining about the number of fatalities lately by gold paint?"

"Yeah, that gold paint can be a real killer," Chas laughed, folding up the paper page and placing it on the desk beside him. "But you know some of those older bond films were the best."

"What was the film with that sexy chick who came out of the sea carrying a knife?" someone asked.

"Dr No," Dempsey supplied, still apparently engrossed in his newspaper and not bothering to look up from it as he spoke. "And it was Ursula Andress playing Honey Ryder."

"Damn, I wouldn't say no to her," the officer drooled.

"Me neither," Chas said under his breath, looking slightly guilty when Harry glanced up at him after catching his comment.

"So, if you had to choose anyone to watch emerge in a bikini from the sea and be stuck on a desert island with you who would it be?" the officer put to the guys.

Before she could tell her brain not to Harry's eyes instinctively flicked up and across to Dempsey and, to her horror, collided straight with his! She froze momentarily like a rabbit caught in headlights and there was a flicker of shocked surprise across his face too before he slowly began to smile. It was the first time their eyes had met in a long time. Her heart thudded wildly in her chest at the look on his face and she felt her cheeks flood with colour. She gave a small smile and glanced downwards at the file again, feeling her face getting hotter and hotter.

Harry's eyes flicked over to Dempsey's and his heart jolted. For a second he saw the way her face lit up with surprise and hope surged through him. He couldn't stop the smile that spread across his face and he felt even more delighted to notice her blushing furiously. So she wasn't entirely immune to him! He'd been telling himself for nearly a month now that he was wasting his time pining over her, that she would never want him as much as he wanted her, and part of him still believed that, but at that moment he didn't care because there was clearly still something between them and he'd missed that so very much. He felt suddenly exhilarated and it was a feeling that he couldn't resist seeking more of.

As the officers started to head off home and Harry began to tidy away the files on her desk Dempsey rose from his seat and walked around her desk, hovering behind her.

"You finished that file?" he asked.

She glanced back at him. "Yes, they are all done."

"Thanks for doin' that. Better have a quick look at that last one in case Spikings asks anythin'," he said, leaning over her desk to grab the file and placing a hand on her waist as he did so.

The feel of his hand on her made her pulse race again and she had to wonder about the gesture. It was an unnecessary one, as was his insistence on looking over the file. She risked a quick glance up at him and his eyes darted back to the page. Her gaze moved from him to scan her desk, although everything had already been tidied away.

Dempsey's eyes moved thoughtfully back to the profile of Harry's face as he contemplated his next move.

"Seems fine to me," he said, placing the file back on her desk.

Her eyes flicked to him once more and she saw that he was looking at her intently. She felt her face growing hotter again and she had to find something to do than just sit there staring at him so she broke eye contact and busied herself with putting the file in her drawer.

Dempsey took a seat on Harry's desk beside her and watched her actions, trying to figure out what was going through her head.

"Harry," he finally said quietly, drawing her attention.

She turned her head to look back at him but she hadn't realised that he had moved closer to her by sitting on the desk and their faces were suddenly inches apart. She moved her head back slightly with surprise but his expression held her eyes to his. There was a sudden silence then and it felt as if the room had closed in on them. She couldn't move her eyes away from his. What was he going to do? To say? The silence stretched on, their eyes searching each others. Then his eyes instinctively moved to her lips and she noticed the movement, her eyes widening a little in reaction, her lips parting slightly as her breathing quickened.

Dempsey didn't know what to do or to say, all he knew was a sudden insane urge to feel her lips on his, to feel the heat between them again.

Harry sat there willing Dempsey to kiss her. She didn't care that they were in the office and that someone might walk in, she longed for him so desperately.

"Harry," Dempsey broke the silence suddenly, "are you doin' anythin' tonight?"

The question threw her. She had really believed that he was going to kiss her just then and her mind wasn't prepared for anything else.

"Err, tonight? Well, I'm, I've got..."

His heart sank. She was busy. Either that or she was trying to make an excuse. It had been wrong of him to ask.

"It don't matter. Look, I gotta run. See you tomorrow," he said, abruptly standing up and heading for the door.

"Dempsey, wait!" she called after him, standing up. "It was just Pippa and Simon..." but he was already out of the door. "... you could join us...or I could rearrange," she said to herself, feeling utterly distraught.

The room fell silent again and she felt as if she were the only person on the earth at that moment. He'd gone, and so as far as she was concerned, she may as well have been.


	47. Chapter 47

Harry was close to breaking point by the time she had arrived home. After two weeks of hoping that he would want her again she had gone and messed it up! He probably thought that she didn't want to be with him tonight! He was probably never going to ask her again! And besides, she just couldn't bear waiting any longer to be close to him. Maybe she should leave SI10 once and for all. It would be torture not seeing him again, but it was torture now too!

She had cried all the way home that afternoon, she had cried when she had closed her front door behind her, she had cried when she had laid in the bath, and she had cried when she had attempted to tidy up the house ready for her visitors that night. Finally she had poured herself a large glass of wine and sat on the sofa, trying to pull herself together. Pippa and Simon would be there in half an hour and she couldn't be in that state when they arrived so she had no choice, she had to stop all the wallowing in self pity. It was probably a good thing that they were coming to see her because it was forcing her to compose herself and also they would talk about old times, the fun they had had before she'd even met Dempsey. Yes, that's what she would concentrate on.

Half an hour later the front doorbell rang and Harry opened the door to an excited Pippa and Simon.

"Hello stranger!" Pippa exclaimed, holding up a bottle of champagne.

"Hello you," she replied, standing aside for them to enter. She had thought that seeing them again would cheer her up but in fact she was embarrassed to find herself having to swallow a lump in her throat. She had to get a grip, she was being so bloody pathetic tonight!

Pippa handed the bottle to Harry and then Simon followed her with another bottle, kissing Harry on the cheek as he entered.

"Thank you," she said, looking at the bottles and feeling her eyes prickle with the beginning of tears. Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! She paused for a moment, willing herself not to lose control. Then she smiled. "Come on, let's get one of these opened."

Something wasn't quite right with Harry, and Pippa had been concerned enough by the telephone conversations she'd had with her that week, but now that she'd seen her she was sure that something was wrong. She was putting on an act for them but Pippa could tell from her face that it was a strain.

They walked into the lounge and Harry placed the champagne down on a table. "I'll just get the glasses," she said, turning to leave for the kitchen.

"Hold on," Pippa said, halting her and taking hold of both her hands. "Are you okay Harry?" she said, searching her face.

Oh lord, she could feel the tears threatening again. She nodded, not trusting herself to speak. Pippa reached out and touched her face with concern but this just made things harder for Harry and her face contorted with pain as she tried desperately to hold the tears in.

"Oh sweetie, what is it?" Pippa said, pulling Harry to her and hugging her tightly. "I knew there was something wrong."

Harry couldn't hold back anymore and she burst into tears, her words coming out in an emotional rush.

"It's Dempsey. He doesn't love me Pippa, he doesn't even care anymore and I love him so much! I'm going to have to leave SI10 because I can't bear it anymore but then I'll never see him again and… and I worry about him. And I feel like I'm dying inside, I've never loved anyone so much Pippa!"

Pippa held her tightly and fought to hold back her own tears. "Oh sweetie, it will be okay. We're here now and we can talk things through. He seemed so besotted with you before at the pub, maybe it's all a big misunderstanding."

Simon watched the girls and he felt a lot like his heart was breaking too! But this didn't make sense, not after what Dempsey had said the night of Fry's birthday. A guy doesn't just fall out of love like that and he really didn't seem the kind of man to admit that he loved her if he didn't! He had to do something because there was no way he would sit back and see Harry so upset!

"Harry," he interrupted, "where's your address book?"

Pippa moved aside then looked at him with bewilderment. It took some time for Harry to register his comment but she eventually sniffed and attempted to dry her eyes whilst trying to figure out his odd question.

"Why do you want my address book?" she asked.

He approached her and took her by the shoulders. "Now don't overreact but I want to speak with him."

Harry's eyes widened. "No! Are you mad?"

He had anticipated a reaction like that. "Harry," he said looking deeply into her eyes, "Do you trust me?"

She hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Yes, but…"

He put a finger to her lips to stop her from speaking. "Well then if you trust me you'll know that I won't say anything to embarrass you. I just want to find out what's going through his head because I don't think you really know and like Pippa said, this could all just be one huge misunderstanding. I'll make it really casual, just invite him for a beer at that pub we went to. Then at least you will know one way or another, but you need to be sure because you may be missing the opportunity to be happy with him."

Harry looked uncertain and turned to Pippa to see her reaction.

"He's right Harry, let them meet up."

"Okay," she said quietly, "but please don't tell him that I've been crying about this!"

"Hey! I'm not going to say anything to embarrass you! I'm on your side remember?" he assured her.

She nodded. "Okay, I'll tell you the number."

Simon went to the phone and dialled the number that Harry called out. He waited for Dempsey to answer, praying that he'd agree to meet up with him.

"Dempsey," came the curt answer when the other side picked up.

"Hi Jim, it's Simon."

The other end went silent for a while.

"Don't tell me you don't remember the only Brit who can quote John Wayne properly!" he joked.

"Oh yeah... what's up?" he replied.

"Well I'm hoping you can help me out tonight. I'm at Harry's house at the moment with Pippa, and the girls are driving me nuts! I can't get a word in edgeways and I could really do with a beer and some conversation that doesn't involve the latest fashion trends!"

Dempsey's heart had begun to pound at just the sound of Harry's name mentioned. He laughed at Simon's comment. "Yeah, that's broads for ya!"

"So how do you fancy meeting at that pub we last went to? I'll sneak out and leave the girls to it for a bit."

Dempsey was kind of hoping that Harry and Pippa would come too but it may be a good thing to meet with just Simon. He may be able to find out something about Harry.

"Sure, I aint doin' nothin', a beer sounds good," he replied.

"Okay, I'm setting off now. I'll see you down there," he said, giving the thumbs up to the girls who were now sitting on the sofa. Harry's heart lurched, she was both nervous but quite excited too. Maybe Simon really could find out what was going on.

Simon put down the receiver and fished his car keys out of his pocket again. "I've got to go. I'll make an excuse and phone you from the pub." He went to the sofa and gave Harry a quick kiss on the cheek. "Have faith sweetheart," he said into her ear before turning to leave.

"Simon," she called out before he reached the door.

He turned.

"Thank you," she smiled.

"Anytime," he smiled back, and then left.

"Right, time to open one of those bottles!" Pippa said, jumping off the sofa and heading for the kitchen for the glasses. "We are going to sort this out Harry. I just know this has happened because of miscommunication between you two. Trust me, I have an instinct for this kind of thing," she shouted from the other room. "I know what those type of guys are like, they spout rubbish and then wonder why everything is going wrong!" She reappeared with two glasses of champagne in hand. "And let's face it," she said, handing Harry a glass and rejoining her on the sofa, "you're not exactly forthcoming in your own feelings. He probably hasn't got a clue how you feel!"

Harry took a sip of the champagne and thought about it. "Well you know he was the one who said it wasn't working between us. I'm not going to beg him!"

Pippa frowned. "Really? He said that? I'm surprised. What, he was one minute crazy about you and the next saying it was over?"

"Well yes," she replied. "Almost."

"Almost?" Pippa questioned.

"Well it had been a bad day for him admittedly."

Pippa could see a possible reason for his actions coming up. "Why bad?"

"Someone in one of our cases that Dempsey had got close to had died," she admitted.

Pippa nodded. "You know grief can have a strange effect on people. Everyone deals with it differently but some people push the ones closest to them away because they can't cope with loss, they start to think that they will lose everyone they love in the end."

"Maybe," Harry replied, reluctant to blindly believe everything that Pippa was saying only to have to face more heartache and disappointment.

"Hey look, I remember you yourself saying that you'd had a mad moment at the thought of losing him," Pippa said suddenly, lifting up her hand which was holding onto the champagne glass and pointing a finger at her. "You told me you handed in your resignation. Then after you'd thought about it you realised that you didn't want to be without him. But think about this, he came after you remember, he made it clear that he didn't want you to leave and it must have been hard for him to admit that because you weren't even in a proper relationship then." Pippa suddenly realised that she might have been a bit accusatory and she softened her voice. "So what's not to say that he went through a similar thing. He panicked about losing you and then probably didn't have a clue how to fix things. Then you gave up hope and became less than communicative and he's probably convinced himself that there was no way back."

Harry was surprised to realise that Pippa was actually making a hell of a lot of sense. But having said that it was still all supposition.

**********

"So, how's things with you then Jim?" Simon asked, handing Dempsey a bottle of beer at the bar.

"Oh, you know, so, so. How about you?" he answered vaguely.

"Can't complain. How's work? Busy?" Simon asked, trying to find a way of getting onto the subject of Harry.

"You know it aint too bad right now, a damn miracle, but it aint!" he said. "To be honest I think that the boss is avoidin' givin' us anythin' too rough because of Harry getting' shot. Think it shook him up a bit. I aint complainin' though. I'm glad of anythin' to keep her out of the firin' line again!"

"I'll second that," Simon replied, clinking Dempsey's bottle with his.

"This last case wasn't too bad though and we aint really had nothin' big to work on since. But you know we had suspects and a witness who'd got us goin' nuts! I gotta tell you, I didn't know right away who was tellin' the truth. Harry worked it out though. She's the best at that, convincin' the witnesses to speak up. I was so wound up by it all," he admitted, surprised with himself at how much he'd said already to Simon. "I sometimes think she don't need me at all," he said with an awkward laugh.

Simon had listened intently to all Dempsey had said and far from hearing that Dempsey wasn't interested in Harry anymore, all he was hearing was how much he admired her. Plus he figured that no man would talk so much about a woman he had lost interest in.

"Oh she needs you," Simon replied.

Dempsey was about to take another swig of beer but on hearing Simon's response he stopped with the bottle half way to his mouth.

"What d'ya mean?" he asked.

Simon thought for a second. "I thought you two would be together tonight, considering what seemed to be going on last time we were all in here," he said, changing the subject slightly.

Dempsey's face fell. "Yeah well…"

"Well?" Simon questioned.

Dempsey ran a hand over his face and seemed suddenly distraught. "I messed up!" he came out with suddenly. "Oh boy did I mess up! And now I dunno what to do!"

"What do you want to do?" Simon asked.

"I want her back of course! But I've lost my chance now, that's for sure! I wanted to tell the next day how sorry I was but she was angry with me and I just didn't know what to do. Then every day she kinda avoided me and it don't take a genius to work out that she don't wanna know me no more!"

Simon sighed. "Maybe if you'd talked to her at some point you could have worked things out."

"I know, I know I should have talked to her, at least to say how sorry I am, and to tell her that I didn't mean any of it. But…" he groaned. "She's moved on now and … oh I dunno!" Dempsey felt suddenly so angry with himself, for being so weak and not being able to face her with this. "It's been hell! I know I deserve it and all but," he took another quick swig of his beer with a shaky hand. "I'd do anythin' to get back with her. I'm so lost without her! What the hell am I gonna do?"

Simon thought now might be a good time to speak to the girls and to give Dempsey a little time to compose himself.

"Hey mate, Harry still cares about you a lot. And she's not as unaffected by all this as you think. She goes a lot deeper than that. And if she didn't want to be with you then she wouldn't have let things progress so far in the first place. Just think about that for a bit, I've got to take a leak. Here," he said, throwing some money on the bar, "get us another round in will you? And don't give up hope so easily. We'll sort this out. I'll be back."

Simon disappeared through the crowds of people and found a payphone in the entrance hallway. He fished out some change and made a call.

"Simon?" came the immediate answer.

"Pippa?"

"Yes, yes it's me. How is it going?" she asked impatiently.

"Look Pip the guy's in bits! Someone needs to bang their heads together! I don't know why she thinks he's gone cold on her, he's bloody besotted! Work your magic on Harry will you and make her realise, I'll do my best this end."

Pippa's face broke into a huge smile. "Okay. Are you still at that pub?" she asked.

"Yes, why?"

"I just wondered. We may join you. Just give us a quick call back if you decide to leave anytime soon, okay?"

"No problem, see you later," he said hanging up.

Pippa replaced the telephone receiver and ran into the kitchen where Harry was opening the second champagne bottle.

"Guess who's besotted with you?" she sang out excitedly.

Harry swung around with a shocked expression. "What?"

"You heard me, that was Simon on the phone. He said that Jim was in bits about the break up and that from the way he was talking about you he's most definitely besotted!"

Harry's face broke out into a smile and she laughed, feeling a little embarrassed but suddenly more than a little excited inside.

"Are you sure that Simon wasn't exaggerating?" she asked, hardly daring to believe it was true but already feeling the effects of the possibility that it was.

Pippa pulled a face. "Simon, nah! He's just a bloke! He doesn't have the imagination to exaggerate!" she laughed, bounding up to Harry and lacing her fingers with hers whilst jumping up and down with excitement. Harry giggled and felt a lot like she had when she was at school with Pippa. "Soooo, you're obviously besotted with him too. I can see the romance of the year ahead!"

"Stop it!" she laughed, unlacing their fingers and passing Pippa her glass.

"No I wont stop it, there's nothing to hold you back now. How many people get inside knowledge like that?" she said, heading for the lounge again and back to the sofa. "Okay, you two need to have a good talk but you both feel the same about each other for goodness sake! Go for it Harry!"

Harry couldn't help grinning as she sat next to Pippa on the sofa. "I must admit, when it's good, it really is good with him!"

"Hey," Pippa grinned back, "you haven't even got to the really good bit with him yet!"

Harry blushed and took a sip of her champagne.

Pippa laughed. "Look at you! Blushing at the very thought of it!"

She blushed more and laughed with embarrassment. "But seriously Pippa, I have missed being close to him so much. I really thought he wasn't interested anymore. Well, apart from…"

Pippa looked interested. "Apart from?" she prompted.

"Well today. We had a kind of intense moment in the office," she admitted.

"In the office!" Pippa exclaimed. "How wonderfully risqué."

"No! Not _that_ intense!" Harry corrected, thinking back to their other intense moments in Spikings's office which really had been risqué! "But there was chemistry again, and for one moment, I was sure he was going to kiss me. Then I went and messed it up," she finished with a frown.

"Never mind about that," Pippa said, dismissing her negativity. "The point is that he wants you and you want him so now the question is, what are we going to do about it?"

"Do?" Harry asked nervously.

"Yes! You told Simon not to say anything about how you feel remember so right now Jim doesn't have a clue how much you want to be with him!"

"Oh yes," she said.

"Well I have an idea," Pippa began making Harry slightly nervous. "We should go to the pub… no hang on, maybe you should go to the pub," she amended. "Yes, because if you go on your own then Simon will leave and you and Jim will be alone," she smiled.

Harry looked uncertain. "But what if they don't want me interrupting?"

"What? Don't be silly! Simon only went there to fix things between you two and as Simon has already said, Jim is besotted with you! Ooooh, I've had another idea!" she said suddenly. Harry dreaded to think what it was. "You should get dressed up and make yourself look stunning and sexy, which won't take a lot, and you'll blow his socks off!"

"Don't you think that's a bit too… well won't I look too keen?"

Pippa looked exasperated with her. "You are keen! And so is he! The only people who can't see it is you two yourselves! Look, I've seen you make a half hearted attempt at flirting with men before and you've had them positively drooling. If you go the whole hog with Jim, considering the way he feels, there will be no stopping you two!"

Harry thought about it for a while. "Maybe."

"You said yourself that there was chemistry between you today! He's crazy about you Harry! He was that night before at the pub, it was so obvious! Go for it! Be brave," she encouraged her.

Harry felt a shot of nervous excitement run through her as she seriously considered doing what Pippa had suggested. Pippa saw her hesitation and knew that she was thinking about it so she took advantage of that and pulled her off the sofa.

"Come on! Let's make you look gorgeous!" she said, ushering her towards the hallway.

Harry let herself be ushered. She reasoned that she did already have the inside knowledge that Dempsey regretted what he'd said and that he did still want her so she really wasn't taking that much of a risk. She was more nervous than she could remember ever being suddenly but…what the hell.

"You are going to look so stunning and sexy tonight, he won't know what to do with himself!" Pippa said as they climbed the stairs.


	48. Chapter 48

Pippa helped Harry with her clothes hair and makeup that evening and Harry was grateful for her help. Not that she usually had problems deciding what to wear but on that occasion she was a bundle of nerves and besides, Pippa had made a career out of fashion and beauty and so Harry knew she was in good hands. They decided not to over dress her but to keep to clothes that Pippa described as the 'epitome' of Harry. Pippa had gone into detail explaining why. She said that since Dempsey was 'besotted' with her that she shouldn't wear anything very different to what she normally wore, but just a slightly more dressy, elegant version. She dressed Harry in a below the knee length, straight, black skirt which transformed itself into something less ordinary by having a spit up the side. Once Harry had changed into the skirt Pippa stood back with a thoughtful expression before riffling through Harry's underwear drawer and smiling to herself with triumph when she found what she hoped would be there. She went back to Harry with the objects behind her back and a grin on her face.

"What?" Harry asked, noticing Pippa's expression.

"Now this is for Jim's eyes only but with that skirt, if you find the right opportunity, he just might get a glimpse of these," she said, producing a pair of black hold up stockings. "It will drive him wild!"

Harry looked at the stockings and grinned. It felt daring for her but Pippa was right she was sure, Harry could well imagine Dempsey appreciating stockings.

"Now that would certainly send out a message," Harry said, taking the stockings off Pippa and contemplating them in her hands.

"Harry, I think it has to be all or nothing tonight. You've waited long enough. Trust me and wear those. If you want him you need to send out messages and those will help," Pippa urged.

"Calm down," she responded, "I didn't say I wasn't going to wear them."

Pippa's face broke out into a smile. "Good girl!"

Pippa then turned her attention to picking out a top for Harry to wear. She finally settled on a gold satin blouse which was both chic and classy. When she held it up to Harry she knew immediately that it was right, simply because the shimmery material seemed to reflect off her face, lighting it up with a golden glow. She applied her make up to maximize that effect and the sparkling, golden earrings which dangled by her neck were the perfect way to accessorise the outfit. Lastly a pair of high, stiletto shoes were added and Harry was dressed to kill.

"You look fabulous," Pippa said, assessing the finished results.

Harry smiled but held her stomach, "I feel nervous."

"You'll be fine," Pippa assured her. "Look, I'll drop you off at the pub but if you need me for anything I'm going straight home so you'll know where I'll be. But somehow," she said, looking her up and down, "I think you'll be otherwise engaged tonight! Come on Cinderella, let's go," she grinned.

************

With a shaking hand Harry pushed open the door of the pub and entered, searching through the crowds for Dempsey and Simon. Her eyes scanned the bar but they didn't appear to be there and for a moment she felt a pang of disappointment, thinking that she'd missed them. Then she moved into the room and spotted Simon standing by the pool table and Dempsey about to take a shot. What a relief! Noticing an empty bar stool not far from the pool table, she strolled up to it and took a seat. Neither of them had seemed to notice her. Oh how much she hoped that she was doing the right thing! She ordered a glass of wine and swivelled on her stool so that her back was against the bar. Picking up her wine glass, she took a sip and looked directly at Simon who was facing her. When she caught his eye she smiled and lifted her glass. He looked pleased that she was there and nudged Dempsey, making him frown with confusion and abandon his shot. Simon pointed in Harry's direction at which point Dempsey turned and did a double take. His eyes widened in amazement and Harry could tell that he was shocked to see her there, was that a good thing or not? He raised an eyebrow and she smiled a dazzling smile and lifted her glass again. He smiled back. It seemed to be a good thing so far. She put her glass back on the bar and motioned with one finger for him to approach her.

The very last thing Dempsey had expected that evening was to see Harry, so when he turned and saw her sitting at the bar, for a moment he thought his mind had conjured her up through wishful thinking! But no, it really was her and my god she looked stunning! Not only that but she was gesturing for him to go to her! And damn seductively too! It was almost too much to take in all at once and as he walked over to her he felt decidedly dumbstruck.

"Hiya Harry," he said when he reached her.

"Hello Dempsey," she smiled.

There was a moment when they both simply looked at each other before he spoke again.

"I gotta tell ya Harry, I'm surprised to see you here."

Oh no, please don't say that he thought she was being too pushy! "Well, I was just passing," she laughed. "Okay if I hang around for a while?" She tried to make it sound casual.

"Sure," he smiled. "We've already played two games anyway," he said, putting his pool cue down.

Fantastic! He looked pleased that she wanted to stay.

"No, you two carry on. Finish the game," she replied, before leaning closer to him, placing a hand on his lower back and whispering, "Who's winning?"

He was well aware of her hand and surprised by it. Even under normal circumstances she rarely instigated physical contact. "It's a close game but I think I might have the upper hand," he winked.

He was flirting with her! She lifted her hand to his shoulder and pulled him closer to whisper to him again. "Well I know who I'm rooting for, partner." He pulled back slightly and again had a look of astonishment about him which grew to a pleased grin as her hand ran down his back and she gently pushed him towards the pool table again. "Go get 'em tiger!" she said, mimicking an American accent.

He returned to the table to take his shot, smiling at her over his shoulder as he went. She kissed three of her fingers slowly and softly before waving them at him and giving him a look that was hot enough to reduce his bones to jelly. As he went to take his shot all he could think about was that look and the real possibility that maybe she'd decided to make a move on him! A big bold move! He hit the white ball and it ricocheted off the sides of the table, missing every other ball around it. He frowned and stood up. Simon grinned and moved around the table, nudging him out of the way.

"She's hot for you tonight and you're not concentrating Jim. You'd better go talk to her because I've got this game in the bag," Simon said, watching Dempsey's look of surprise with amusement.

So Simon saw something too. Was she really 'hot' for him? Bloody hell he hoped so!

Dempsey returned to Harry at the bar to see that she had brought him a bottle of beer.

She pouted and handed him the beer. "Such a shame. Weren't you supposed to hit one of those balls?" she teased.

He scratched his head. "Err yeah... You shouldn't have," he said, changing the subject and accepting the beer.

Okay, she'd brought the beer for a reason. It was part of a plan she'd thought up on the way to the pub to let him know what she had in mind for that night. She wasn't going to let herself chicken out but her heart rate doubled as she spoke the following words.

"Well, I tell you what," she replied, linking arms with him and bringing him closer, "since I got that one, you can return the favour with coffee at your place later."

His eyes widened and he was so amazed at what she'd said that he was lost for words. He gave a nervous laugh and looked around the room. She was joking, right? Playing with him. But when he looked back at her she was waiting expectantly for his reply, her head tilted to one side, watching him intently.

"Yeah, great... Good. I mean...coffee, yeah," he stuttered.

Oh lord, she'd actually flustered him! Maybe this was going to work after all! Her face broke out into a smile and he smiled back, laughing again and taking a huge swig of his beer.

He turned to see Simon potting the last ball and shrugged. "Guess I lost that one then."

She climbed off her chair and smoothed her skirt down over her legs. "Why don't we play again and I'll help you out?" she suggested. "Of course you may have to give me a few pointers; it's not a game I've played before."

Wow, she was full of surprises tonight! "Sure. If Simon is okay with that."

"Okay with what?" Simon asked, catching the tail end of their conversation. Harry turned to pick up a second bottle of beer that she had brought and handed it to Simon.

"Well I was just saying that since Dempsey seems to be a bit rusty tonight perhaps Dempsey and I could join forces and see if we can beat you that way," Harry challenged.

"Why not?" Simon smiled, thanking Harry for the beer and also thinking that there was a good chance that Dempsey would be even worse at potting the balls with Harry that much closer.

The balls were rearranged on the table and Simon broke whilst Dempsey gave a few pointers to Harry. Then it was Harry's turn to take a shot and Dempsey placed a hand on her hip to usher her to the table and show her how to aim. Simon took the opportunity to return to the bar for his drink whilst Dempsey tutored her.

He put the cue in her hands, placing one arm around her body and the other at the end of the cue just behind her hand. They leant over the table and he spoke into her ear, instructing her on her line of sight. She was so aware of him behind her, and although their bodies weren't really touching they may as well have been for the energy and heat between them. Just the touch of his hand on her waist was arousing. She could feel the heat of his hand through the silky material of her blouse. God she loved the feel of his hands on her. The thought of them caressing every part of her body sent shivers of anticipation through her and made it impossible for her to focus on anything else.

Dempsey could feel the curve of Harry's waist in his hand and the satin of her blouse almost made it seem as if he was feeling her skin through it. Hell, he'd give anything to feel her skin against his at that moment. He pictured himself taking the blouse off her and holding her against him. Her skin against his. Then the familiar scent of Harry's perfume, a scent that was so uniquely hers, hit him as he put his face next to hers. It never failed to evoke a reaction in him. Their bodies were not quite touching but he could very easily rectify that, although considering the position they were in he just might get too carried away there and then! She suddenly shifted position and moved one leg backwards and he glanced down when it skimmed against his. Then he caught sight of the black lacy top of one of her stockings through the split in her skirt and his heart began to pound. Stockings and Harry was not something he'd experienced before and my god at that point he didn't know if he wanted them on or off her. No, him taking them off her. Yes, that was most definitely what he wanted. And if she was wearing stockings like those, what the hell else was she wearing underneath?

"I've completely forgotten what I was saying," he admitted suddenly, "Remind me."

He looked down at the side of her face and noticed that it was considerably flushed.

"Err..." she began and then gave up, lowering her head and laughing as if in admission.

"You too eh," he grinned. "Interesting position we're standin' in aint it?"

She turned to look at him, smiled slowly and whispered. "Hmm, but if we carry on like this I'm going to miss every shot!"

He whispered back and she felt a warm tingling in her ear. "Good, then the quicker we can get back to my place for that coffee."

There followed a burning look between them during which Dempsey was once again surprised to find that she didn't shy away from the implication. She really had meant it!

"So, am I standing right?" she asked, aware that Simon would soon be wondering what they were doing.

He grinned and looked down at their bodies so close to each other. "Oh yeah!" Then he changed his mind and gave into temptation. "Well actually…" He put his hands on her hips and pulled her backwards slightly, so that her body was now pressed snugly against him. He was pushing her he knew but he wanted to see how this new seductive Harry would react.

Her heart leapt in her chest at the sudden intimate contact between their bodies. Oh god she wanted him! But they had to get through that bloody pool game somehow!

"Hmmm, better yes, but maybe not for our game."

Wow! An admission that she liked it! He grinned and reluctantly moved backwards, allowing her to take her shot. She didn't do as appallingly as he had when he'd taken his final shot on the last game, she at least hit the ball she was aiming for but failed to pot it. Simon took his shot and he also failed to pot a ball.

"She put the white in a tricky place," he commented as he passed Dempsey.

Dempsey simply gave a knowing smile and took his shot. This time he potted two balls but he still wasn't playing at his best. Either Simon or he needed to hurry up and pot some more. This game was getting in the way of more pressing things. Simon sat at the bar again and Dempsey stood at the other side of the table, facing the bar. He watched as Harry leant over the table to take another shot. His eyes moved from hers to the front of her silky blouse which fell forward slightly, revealing a glimpse of a black lacy bra and creamy white skin. That bra was going to come off too if he had anything to do with it! Damn it she was so hot tonight!

The game continued but Dempsey wasn't really concentrating on it at all. He was far too busy imagining what would happen when he got her back to his place. Finally the game finished and Simon won, yet again. For once in his life he didn't give a damn about losing, he just wanted to be alone with Harry.

After the game Simon made an excuse to leave. It was obvious that they wanted to be alone and he was pleased for Harry that she and Dempsey seemed to be on the road to working out their misunderstandings. He hoped that they would talk and finally discover the feelings between them.

"Shall we get another drink?" Harry asked when Simon had left. She needed some Dutch courage.

"Sure," Dempsey said, following her back to the bar.

They ordered more drinks and took them to a quieter part of the pub, sitting next to each other on a sofa in a secluded area.

"You know, this aint a bad place," he said, glancing behind them at the bar. "We've had a few good times in here."

"Hmm," she said, remembering Fry's birthday celebrations. "So tell me, I'm sure you've talked to the boys about this, how on earth did Fry manage to charm a woman back to his place the other night?"

Dempsey laughed. "The guys gave him tips on the best chat up lines."

She covered her face with her hand. "Oh good grief. And that actually worked?" she said with disbelief.

"It must have done but that kinda thing wouldn't work on you eh Harry."

She gave it some thought. "Well," she said, placing her arm on the back of the sofa and trailing her fingers on the back of his neck, "most of the time no, but it depends on who the person is."

He looked surprised. "Mind if I give it a go?"

She laughed. "Am I going to be cringing at your chat up lines?"

"Is it going to put you off?" he challenged.

"Try it and see," she came back, picking up her wine glass, sitting back on the sofa and crossing her legs.

His eyes fell to the split in her skirt again and the glimpse of stocking. He reached down and trailed a finger over the lacy top of it. "How about, 'This outfit would look great on my bedroom floor.'"

Oh good lord! I guess there was no doubt that he wanted to take her to bed tonight then! She noted that the stockings had worked. She'd thought that they would. She'd caught Dempsey gazing at her legs on numerous occasions in the office or when they had gone out together. She couldn't go coy now, now that her encouragement had obviously worked.

She lifted an eyebrow. "Well, perhaps we'll test that one out."

His eyes widened. Bloody hell! Maybe he really was going to get lucky tonight!

"What about, 'Damn, if being sexy was a crime you'd be guilty as charged!'" he added.

"Hmm, are you going to arrest me then?" she smiled.

He smiled back. "Oh, you bet!" This was all going exceedingly well! "Okay, no more chat up lines. Think I'll quit while I'm ahead." He thought for a second and on impulse changed his mind. "Okay, just one more, 'what would you like for breakfast?'"

Her heart thundered. He was testing her to see if she was going to stay.

She smiled. "That's easy, one of your 'best breakfasts I've ever eaten.'"

So she was definitely planning on staying then!

"Harry," he began.

"Hmm."

"Is it coffee time now?"

She smiled and nodded, making both their heart rates rocket.


	49. Chapter 49

**Note: The love scene will be ready later today.**

Dempsey jumped up off the sofa and held out his hand to Harry. She smiled and took it and they left the pub in a hurry, laughing at the obvious impatience of both of them.

"Damn it, I hope we can get a cab quickly," Dempsey said, looking down the road. "Oh to hell with it! You wait here and I'll run in and order one." He wasn't prepared to wait on the off chance that one would pass. He didn't really want to wait for one to be ordered either but they had no choice.

Harry stood on the pavement outside the pub and waited for Dempsey to return, her heart thudding in her chest at the thought of what they were going to do. She'd never been so nervous and excited in all her life.

Dempsey came running back out of the pub and stood behind Harry, putting his arms around her waist and linking his hands in front of her.

"Luckily a cab just dropped off nearby. It will be here any minute," he said into her ear. She smiled and placed her hands on top of his. He nuzzled her neck and enjoyed her closeness. "I just thought it was gonna be a few beers and a couple of games of pool, I didn't think it was gonna turn into the best night of my life!" he said, speaking his thoughts.

Oh god! How could she have been so wrong about how he felt? What a wonderful thing to say! She turned around in his arms and gazed up at him, reaching out to touch his face with one hand. His eyes softened as he looked down at her. She was just about to speak but was interrupted by the arrival of the taxi. He took her hand and led her to the car, opening the door for her and letting her get in before running around the other side to get in himself.

As soon as he had told the driver where they were going he sat back in his seat but turned to Harry, taking her hands in his.

"Sweetheart, we need to talk about somethin'. Well, what I mean is that I need to say somethin'," he corrected. God he was suddenly extremely anxious that he was going to say the wrong thing and mess everything up again! But no! He simply couldn't, there was too much at steak.

"Go on," she said, wondering what he was going to say.

He took in a deep breath. "Well, it's about what I said to you that night that Thomas died." His heart began to beat nervously as he tried to organise the words in his head. She went very still suddenly, her eyes glistening back at him through the dimness of the taxi. The pressure was getting to him, how was he going to say it? Finally he gave up on trying to order his thoughts and the words came out as an emotional outpour. "Harry, I'm so sorry Sweetheart! What I said, it was unforgivable. I want you to know that I didn't mean any of it and I tried to tell you that after but I wasn't sure you wanted to hear it. Truth is that I aint used to people seein' me... you know, what I was like that night. And the last person I wanted to see me like that was you! 'Cause... well I was a mess. But what you did that night, stayin' with me an' all, even after what I'd said, that was somethin' else! No one's ever stuck by me like that. And I was gonna tell you all this in the mornin' but then I found out you'd gone. And after that... well I just wasn't sure how to... what to..." he sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "What I'm tryin' to say is that you mean so much to me Harry and..." he stopped to think. Had he said everything that he'd wanted to? Had he said it all right? He took a breath to speak again but she reached out and placed two fingers over his lips to stop him.

"I understand Dempsey," she smiled. "Gosh, I've never heard you say so much all in one breath!" she laughed.

He smiled then and she realised that she was still touching his lips. She let her fingers linger there and watched them thoughtfully.

"You know... I thought you were going to..." she paused, finding it a little difficult to get the words out, "...kiss me... today in the office." She lowered her hand then but he quickly caught hold of it and urged her to move closer to him. She wriggled across the seat.

He rested his elbow on the back of the seat and trailed his fingers along the side of her face, down her neck and into her hair. "Oh trust me I was," he said as his eyes followed the path of his hand. "But I thought you'd be angry, with it bein' at work an' all."

His gaze returned to hers and she looked up at him longingly. "I suppose I should have been," she whispered, her voice a little unsteady.

His body reacted immediately to the undercurrents of desire between them. His gaze moved to her lips as his hand dropped to her collarbone and found the softness of her skin that was revealed by the edges of her blouse. His fingertips traced patterns on her skin, making her tingle with anticipation.

He began to smile. "Should have been?"

She bit her lip. "Maybe you should have just tried."

His eyes widened with surprise and his smile broadened. He turned his body towards hers then and took her face in his hands, his thumbs caressing her jaw line and skimming her ear rings. Her heart made a small leap in her chest suddenly and her eyes skittered up and down his face, finding it hard to focus on the intensity of his gaze.

"Maybe I should have done," he replied, moving his thumb to her lips and tracing their shape. His body began to ache for her. Her lips opened slightly and she exhaled, closing her eyes briefly as the anticipation stretched on.

Oh god, when was he going to kiss her?

"Maybe you should now," she said finally in a hushed voice when the tension became unbearable.

He smiled a knowing smile and bent his head closer to her but stopped inches from her lips. "You know, I think I should," he whispered.

They sat there gazing at each other, both a mass of desire and anticipation. He moved excruciatingly slowly to close the gap and his lips hovered his front of hers so close that they could feel each other's breath. She opened her mouth and their lips brushed with the lightest of touches. The air between them crackled with energy until finally Dempsey lost the willpower to hold back.

"Damn I've missed this so much!" he exclaimed, moving his hand to her back and propelling her suddenly to him. Their lips collided together and a fire leapt between them. He could feel the heat of her face and the moist warmth of her mouth against his. He groaned and deepened the kiss, delving into her mouth and drawing out a heated reaction from her. Running her hands through his hair she held his head to hers. She gave up all resistance. It seemed so long since she'd felt the heat between them, experienced the excitement of realising his longing for her, and given in to her own. His hands moved down her back and pressed her closer to him. Soon she felt them sliding all over the satin of her blouse. She gasped and pressed herself to him. Her breasts ached against his chest, her body desperate for more.

"Ah Harry, I need you!" he moaned, kissing, feeling and tasting as much of her as he could, but frantic for more, so much more. His hand slid in front of her as he gave into temptation, holding her breast and caressing it over the satin of her blouse.

"Oh god!" she exclaimed, almost beside herself for him. "Your hands Dempsey! When you touch me like that... I... the way you touch me, and look at me, and..." she hardly knew what she was saying.

He delighted in hearing his effect on her. "I'm gonna run my hands all over your body Harry, there aint gonna be no part of it that aint gonna feel my hands tonight," he whispered against her lips.

"Oh god!" she exclaimed. She was shaking inside and out. He was burning for her.

"Are we nearly there yet?" he said, tearing himself away from her for a moment to look impatiently out of the window. They had better be, or he'd end up going insane and taking her there in the taxi!

Dempsey's sudden withdrawal gave Harry a minute of much needed breathing space.

"Think you had better stay over there until we get back," she said, gasping for air and pushing him away when he leant towards her again.

He moved back from her guiltily. "Yeah, guess I had!"


	50. Chapter 50

Dempsey was torn between keeping his lips on Harry's and trying to get his front door unlocked. He fumbled blindly with the key, taking quick glances towards it in-between stealing passionate kisses from Harry who was pulling him greedily towards her. He tore his lips away again, desperate to get inside his flat before some cruel twist of fate came between them as it had done so many times before. Finally he had the door open and he grabbed her by the hand, pulling her inside and slamming the door after them.

**There are a total of 13,890 words in this love scene but as it gets extremely heated from here on in I'm going to leave it here but will gladly send the whole lot to anyone who'd like to read it. My e-mail address is on my profile page so just contact me with a request for the scene and I'll send it out.**


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